IKAR in Mass and Industry Media

Russia imported 891,000 tonnes of grain July-Feb -IKAR

Reuters

MOSCOW, March 4 (Reuters) - Russia imported 891,000 tonnes of grains between July and February this season to cover domestic demand after a drought, the Institute for Agricultural Market Studies (IKAR) said on Monday.

The country imported 530,000 tonnes of Kazakh grain in the first eight months of the crop year and 361,000 tonnes of grains from countries outside its customs union with Kazakhstan and Belarus, Dmitry Rylko, the head of IKAR said in a note.

The drought slashed Russia's harvest by a quarter and forced the country to import more wheat from Kazakhstan, which does not have to pay Russia's 5 percent grain import duty.

Russia's February grain import from non-Customs Union countries was seen at the highest monthly level since the start of this season and exceeded 64,000 tonnes, Rylko said.

"There have not been any marketable wheat supplies (imported) yet," he added.

Those modest flows signal the acceleration of imports into Russia even before the removal of a 5 percent import duty on grain, designed to draw supplies from Europe and the United States, in April or May.

Barley and rice accounted for about 80 percent of Russia's import from non-customs Union countries for the period, Rylko said, adding that some wheat seed was also imported.

04.03.13

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