Source: Zol.ru (Russia)
From September 1 to 10, Russia exported 1.732 million tons of wheat, which is 17% less than during the same period last year. However, Russian Grain Union monitoring showed growing exports to Turkey and increased transshipment via Novorossiysk terminals.
The union’s report, led by Elena Tyurina, showed major grain exports reached 1.91 million tons in early September. She told Interfax that this represents a 22.4% decrease compared to the previous year’s exports during the same period. Barley shipments plummeted 46.6% to 163,000 tons. Corn fell 4.4 times to 14,100 tons. Simultaneously, she remembered August’s sharp drops: wheat exports fell 33%, grain exports 35% year-over-year.
Tyurina notes Russia’s grain, legume, and oilseed export decline, ongoing since last season’s second half (January-June 2025). “In the first ten days of September, only seven grains and legumes were exported. A year ago, there were 19,” she noted.
She states Russian wheat buyers fell sharply, from 53 to 23, in early September 2024. “In particular, such large buyers as Algeria, the UAE, Kenya, and Vietnam have left the number of our importers. A year ago, wheat was shipped to these countries, but this year it is not,” the expert said.
Egypt was the main buyer of wheat in the first ten days of September, receiving 358,000 tons. However, shipments were 40% lower than in the first ten days of September last season, when shippers moved 595,000 tons. Shipments to Bangladesh more than doubled, to 164,000 tons, compared to 80,000 tons a year ago. Sudan imported 148,500 tons, while a year ago there were no shipments to this country.
“For the first time in a long time, shipments to Turkey began to grow: 137,000 tons compared to 126,000 tons a year ago,” Tyurina said. “Israel closes the top five with a 43% increase to 100,000 tons compared to 70,500 tons.”
The expert noted Saudi Arabia received 66,000 tons of wheat, a new market, and South Africa an eightfold increase. “Other positive developments include the resumption of shipments to Mozambique, amounting to 53,600 tons, and a doubling of exports to Nigeria, up to 46,500 tons,” she added.
According to Tyurina, Iran was the main buyer of barley in the first ten days of September, with almost 84,000 tons shipped there, compared to 41,500 tons a year ago. “And after a long break, shipments of barley to Egypt began – 32,000 tons,” she noted.
Iran was the sole corn buyer, but exports plummeted 3.3 times to 14,100 tons from 47,400 tons.
In first 10 days of September, only 21 companies shipped wheat, compared to 67 last year. 20 ports transshipped grain and legumes, compared to 45 ports a year ago. “Moreover, the first ten days of September saw a 15.5% increase in transshipment through Novorossiysk, to 867,000 tons, compared to 750,000 tons.
Prior to that, there had been a long period of decline in shipments. Shipments through Tuapse, from which they sent wheat to Egypt, increased 2.9 times to 93,500 tons from 32,500 tons, she said. While road transshipment volume fell to 434,000 tons from 609,500 tons, its rate of decline slowed to 29% from 30% a year ago. Shipments through Rostov-on-Don fell by 17% to 210,000 tons, and through Azov by 21% to 145,000 tons.”
Tyurina stated that prices in Russia and globally have declined since early September. “This is understandable – it is the harvest season, and supply has increased. Producer prices fell by 2.8% to 13,665 rubles per ton. In dollar terms, the decline was 6.2% to $164.2 per ton,” she said, adding that this factor is one of the conditions for increasing the competitiveness of Russian wheat on the global market.
French wheat prices dropped 2.2% to $226/ton, while American wheat held steady around $226-$227/ton over the decade. Prices for Russian wheat (grade 4, FOB Novorossiysk) fell by 2.6% to $228 per ton. “The price difference between Russian and European wheat is narrowing, which may also be an incentive for further growth in our sales on the global market,” Tyurina believes