Country News
China: China has ordered 600,000 MT of Ukrainian corn with the expectation for further bookings throughout the year, reports Reuters. The shipments come under the auspices of a loan-for-grain deal that China had previously signed with Ukraine. Some of the Ukrainian shipments for April/May were quoted at $240/MT including cost and freight. China received 1 MMT of Ukrainian corn last year through the loan-for-grain deal.
Japan: Japan is reducing its purchases of feed wheat in favor of cheaper corn, according to Bloomberg. The government anticipates purchasing 680,000 MT of wheat this year, a reduction of 24 percent from last year. Purchases of feed barley have also been cut by 47 percent to total some 690,000 MT.
South Africa: Africa’s largest corn producer is experiencing its worst drought since 1992, which has caused the country to import corn for the first time in 11 months, according to Bloomberg News. South Africa will need to import 934,000 MT of yellow corn through March 2016. Three shipments of 30,000 MT each are already en route from Argentina. This drought comes on the heels of one of the largest crops in recent memory.