Ukraine’s actual grain exports exceeds 1mn t in May

Ukraine’s actual grain exports continued to increase in May, having exceeded 1mn t for the first time since the start of the Russian invasion war on 24 February.

Ukrainian companies last month exported 1.01mn t of grains — including wheat, barley, and corn — up from 622,000t in April and just 216,000t in March, customs data shows. That figure is down slightly from a 1.06mn t estimate released earlier this week, and down dramatically from the 3.13mn t of grains shipped in May 2021.

Corn shipments accounted for the largest volume of grains exported last month — at 94.6pc, or 959,000t, higher than the 601,000t shipped in April. Railway exports accounted for 53pc of total corn exports last month, followed by shipments via Ukraine’s ports on the Danube river — Reni, Izmail and Ust-Dunaisk — at 43pc.

Ukraine’s May wheat exports totalled nearly 44,000t, up from 9,000t and 33,000t in April and March, respectively. Barley exports stood at about 12,000t last month, in line with April’s level and up from nearly 7,000t exported in March.

About 75pc of wheat exports and 57pc of barley exports in May were done via Ukraine’s Danube ports, while railway exports accounted for 22pc and 39pc, respectively.

As for oilseeds, Ukraine’s sunflower seed exports jumped to nearly 342,000t in May, more than triple April’s 104,000t and compared with about 10,000t exported in March. About 59pc of overall exports were done through the Danube river ports.

Soybean exports from Ukraine also rose for the third consecutive month to nearly 67,000t in May, up from 57,000t in the previous month and 36,000t in March. River shipments accounted for 50pc of overall soybean exports in May, while 33pc of the volume was exported by rail.

Sunflower oil exports from Ukraine rose to almost 203,000t last month from about 130,000t exported in April and just 29,000t in March. About 35pc of the volume was exported by river, while truck and railway shipments accounted for 32pc and 28pc, respectively, of May sunflower oil exports.

Some 46pc, or nearly 799,000t, of Ukraine’s overall May grain, oilseed and vegetable oil exports were done through the Danube river ports, up from 27pc in April and 17pc in March. The share of railway exports fell to 41pc, or about 710,000t, last month from 62pc in the previous month and 76pc in March. And exports by trucks accounted for 12pc, or 212,000t, of overall Ukraine’s May exports, up from 9pc and 7pc in April and March, respectively.

Ukraine has faced difficulties exporting its agricultural products since late February because of Russia’s blockade of Ukrainian Black Sea and Azov Sea ports. This put around 49mn people in 43 countries at emergency levels of hunger, according to the UN.

Ukraine and its partners, as well as the international organizations, are actively searching for a solution to reopen Ukrainian Black Sea ports immediately, so that critical agricultural products from Ukraine can reach people facing food insecurity in countries.

Tags: corn, Danube, grain, Azov Sea, barley, Oilseed, Vegetable Oil, soybean, Ukraine, Grains, Russia, wheat, sunflower oil, Black Sea, exports, shipments, sunflower seed, ports