Sunflower prices in Ukraine hit new all-time high of UAH 22,500-24,500 per tonne - analysts

MOSCOW. Oct 15 (Interfax) - Sunflower prices in Ukraine rose last week, reaching a new all-time high since late May 2021, while the official purchase prices of processing enterprises stood at UAH 22,500-24,500 per tonne CPT during the reporting period, Ukrainian media said, citing the APK-Inform information and analytical agency.

"Companies have reported that the supply of this oilseed crop increased slightly, but was still insufficient. Therefore, those who needed to urgently replenish their stocks to fulfill their contractual obligations on sunflower oil raised the prices more actively (up to + UAH 1,000 per tonne) compared to the previous week and were ready to pay more for large amounts and oil content," the agency's analysts said.

The growth of raw stuff prices is being buoyed by a hike in the price of sunflower oil on foreign markets, they said. Meanwhile, an increasing number of processing enterprises have said that the profitability of processing operations is low or is almost absent.

The demand price for sunflower oil in Ukrainian ports increased by $20-$30 per tonne last week, reaching the highest level since January 2023, when it stood at $1,020-$1,025 per tonne CPT port.

The highest price for sunflower in Ukraine was recorded in March 2021, when it cost UAH 25,500-27,400 per tonne CPT, APK-Inform said.