The corn crop may fall 24 percent this year, increasing the need for imported supplies, SovEcon said Monday.
The corn harvest may come to less than 3 million metric tons, compared with 3.96 million tons last year, the researcher said in a statement without being more precise. The nation harvested 6.68 million tons of grain in 2008.
Russia may import more than 2 million tons of corn in the marketing year that started July 1, with most of the deliveries sourced from Ukraine, said Andrei Sizov Jr., SovEcon managing director. Imports from the United States may come to “several hundred thousand tons,” with deliveries unlikely before the start of 2011, he said.
“Traders are starting to look for sources of grain not only for the Russian regions that border on Ukraine, but also” for areas in central and northwestern Russia, SovEcon said on its web site.
Corn prices in Russia exceed 7,000 rubles ($229) a ton and are still rising, according to the researcher.
