Ukraine Will Apply Grain Export Quotas, Ministry Says

Ukraine plans to extend grain export quotas through the end of the season, or June 30, to stabilize domestic prices for grains and flour, the Agriculture Ministry said.

“Agriculture Minister Mykola Prysyazhnyuk has made a clear statement that the quotas will be extended through the end of the marketing year,” said Anatoliy Rozgon, head of the agriculture-markets department, according to a statement published yesterday on the ministry’s website.

Ukraine imposed grain export limits last year, putting the caps for wheat, barley and corn at 4.2 million tons, through the end of March. The country harvested 39.2 million tons of grain in 2010, according to statistics data. The government estimates domestic grain needs at 26 million tons.

Ukraine can export as much as 1 million tons of milling wheat by June 30, according to Deputy Agriculture Minister Serhiy Trehubenko. The country on June 30 will have carryover stocks of almost 5.5 million tons of grain, including 3.5 million tons of wheat, Trehubenko said.

(Source: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-02-17/ukraine-will-apply-grain-export-quotas-ministry-says-update1-.html)