Vice Premier Viktor Zubkov, left, cooled the optimism of grain traders, when he announced in May that the government may step up the grain interventions up to 7 million tons of in 2008.
Photo: Mikhail Razuvaev
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Grain Duties Didn’t Last Till Harvest
The banning duty on grain export and interventions lost validity yesterday. Those actions had failed to materially affect the grain prices that are projected to decline in 2008 – the forecasts for the 2008 harvest are very favorable.
The zero duty on the export of grain and barley is in force in Russia from July 1, 2008. The banning duty of 40 percent of the grain customs cost but no less than ˆ105 per a ton and 30 percent of the barley customs cost but no less than ˆ70 per a ton had been in force since February 1, 2008.
Sources with the RF Agriculture Ministry explained that it was decided not to extend the duty as a big harvest is generally forecasted in Russia. The amount is projected to reach 87 million tons to 90 million tons vs. 81.8 million tons gathered in 2007. Russia’s statistics authority, Rosstat, reported yesterday harvesting of the first 1.5 million tons of grain and the export will be set into motion one of these days.
Of interest is that all favorable forecasts for the harvest notwithstanding, the government will buy 7 million tons of grain on the market in line with the program unveiled by Vice Premier Viktor Zubkov and the overall grain export from Russia could be lower than in the season of 2007 to 2008.
www.kommersant.com
All the Article in Russian as of July 02, 2008
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