IKAR in Mass and Industry Media

Analysts raises forecast for 2020 Russian wheat, barley crop

Reuters

MOSCOW, Aug 12 (Reuters) - Russian agriculture consultancy Sovecon has raised its forecast for Russia's 2020 wheat crop by 1.6 million tonnes to 80.9 million tonnes and for barley by 500,000 tonnes to 19.5 million tonnes due to high yields in several regions, it said.

Russian farmers are harvesting this year's crop amid sharp growth in yields in the Central and Volga regions, signalling brighter export prospects for the country. Russia is the world's second largest exporter of wheat after the European Union.

Sovecon's estimate for Russia's 2020 total grain crop was however downgraded by 400,000 tonnes to 126.1 million tonnes, as it reduced its estimate for corn by 1.2 million tonnes to 13.6 million tonnes, it said in a note on Wednesday.

IKAR, another leading consultancy in Moscow, also raised its estimate for the wheat crop earlier this week, adding that it has been "a phenomenal year" due to steady growth in Russia's cumulative yields.

Russian farmers have already harvested 59.8 million tonnes of wheat before drying and cleaning from 55% of the area, with an average yield of 3.70 tonnes per hectare.

As in 2017, when Russia harvested a record crop, the Volga "has become the region which turned a large crop to a very large one", Sovecon said, adding that weather conditions in Siberia and the Urals however remain difficult for the crop.

Its estimate for Russia's corn production was reduced sharply due to weak sowing conditions in the southern regions, home to 45% of the country's sowing area for corn.

12.08.20

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