Country News
China: After holding steady through February, the average price for corn fell by $3.00 to an average $303/MT; the price of corn starch fell by $4.60 to an average of $352/MT. (WPI)
India: A shipment of 40 KMT of non-GMO corn from Ukraine was blocked from being unloaded because its fumigation certificate originated from a third country. The fact that it has been certifiably fumigated should be sufficient but the result is that the supplier will have to pay for a second fumigation in India. (WPI)
Malawi: The state-owned grain marketing company ADMARC is importing 50 KMT of maize from Tanzania and 30 KMT from Zambia. (Reuters)
South Africa: Grain SA, the country’s largest grain company, says that the government’s expectation of 7.2 MMT in corn production is too optimistic. At this time, the company expects corn imports to reach 4.5 MMT, which is 30 percent more than the government is estimating. Some farmers switched to wheat production and there has also been a 5 percent loss in beef and port breeding herds. (Reuters/Bloomberg)