In Oct-Jan 2017/18 Ukraine boosted corn exports to China by 2.8 times

Ukraine in October-January 2017/18 exported 812.5 thousand tons of corn to China, which is 2.8 times more than the volume of supplies over the same period of the previous marketing year, writes APK-Inform.

It is noted that in 2016/17 almost 1.5 million tons of corn were exported from Ukraine to China, which made up more than 60% of Chinese imports (2.5 million tons). The largest monthly volumes (546.5 thousand tons) were shipped from Ukraine to China in May 2017.

"Thus, in the second half of the current MY, it is also possible to activate supplies of Ukrainian corn in this export direction, but taking into account the decline in grain production in Ukraine, the supply potential is somewhat lower," APK-Inform analysts report.

The volume of corn exports from Ukraine is forecast at 17.9 million tons (16% less).

"More frequently there are reports of the Chinese side's refusal from American-origin corn parties because of the presence of GMOs. In this regard, it is the Ukrainian grain that is primarily seen as an alternative to the American," the report says.

Reference: Ukraine in January 2018 exported 2.08 million tons of corn, which is 9.96% less than over the same period last year.