Inside: Grains & Raw Material
European wheat exports suffer from competition
Wheat exports from the European Union (EU) have been slow so far, which has put pressure on grain markets. Which competitor is making it difficult for the EU?
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Choose the subscription that suits youSince July 2017, only 9 million tons of wheat have been exported from the EU-28. That is no less than 25% less than in the same period last year. This is related to Russia's record wheat harvest (83 million tons). That is 14% more than in 2016 and 35% more than in 2015. This makes the country currently the world's most important exporter.
Germany scores slightly higher
At the beginning of the year, the bread wheat price in Germany was just below €150 per tonne. That is comparable to last year. However, feed grain prices showed a slight increase in December compared to last year.
For example, the price of feed wheat in Germany rose to €148 per tonne, in 2016 the price stood at €145 per tonne. The price of barley rose to €140 per tonne in December (€130 per tonne in 2016).
What will 2018 mean?
The development of grain prices in 2018 will probably depend on exports. A number of issues will be important for grain exports from Germany and other EU countries: how is Russia's wheat export and harvest developing, what will the exchange rates do and to what extent will organic products become more important?
The closing price of wheat in recent weeks has been around €160 per tonne (Matif).
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