Export duty on Russian wheat to surge 13.3% to 2,121 rubles per tonne on Oct 23 - Agriculture Ministry

MOSCOW. Oct 18 (Interfax) - The export duty on Russian wheat will surge 13.3% to 2,121 rubles per tonne in the week starting October 23 from 1,872 rubles per tonne during the previous duty period, the Agriculture Ministry said.

The duty on barley will fall, to 389.7 rubles per tonne from 392.8 per tonne the previous week, and the duty on corn will fall to 2,671.7 rubles per tonne from 2,827.2 rubles per tonne.

Duty rates are based on indicative prices of $217.4 per tonne for wheat against $215.80 per tonne in the previous period, $180.2 per tonne for barley versus $182 per tonne, and $213.9 per tonne for corn against $218.30 per tonne.

The duties are valid until October 29, inclusive.

Russia introduced a grain damper mechanism on June 2, 2021, which stipulates floating duties on the export of wheat, corn and barley and the return of funds received from them to subsidize agricultural producers. The duties are calculated weekly from indicators based on the prices of export contracts registered on the Moscow Exchange . Duty rates were calculated in dollars initially and in rubles since July 2022. The duty is 70% of the difference between reference and indicative prices.

The Agriculture Ministry on June 1, 2023, hiked the reference price for calculating the export duty on wheat to 17,000 rubles per tonne from 15,000 rubles per tonne, and the reference price on barley and corn to 15,875 rubles per tonne from 13,875 rubles per tonne. These rose to 18,000 rubles for wheat and 16,875 rubles for barley and corn on June 28, 2024.