U.S. Wheat Exports Increasing Steadily; Trend Likely to Continue

PIERS, the standard in trade intelligence, reveals a steady increase in wheat exports this year, and expects the trend to continue.

With a U.S. trade deficit that has widened significantly, Russia's temporary ban on wheat exports is likely to bode well for the U.S.

According to PIERS, year-to-date January through June U.S. ocean exports of wheat and maslin grew 11 percent, following an 11.2 percent decrease of the same grain commodities during the 2009/2010 trade season (July 2009 – June 2010).

This news, on the heels of a century-in the making drought situation in Russia, is a positive signal for U.S. Grain exporters.

U.S. Ocean export of wheat and maslin came in at more than 21.8 million metric tons (MT) during the 2009/2010 trade season.

Top markets receiving U.S. wheat products include Japan, Nigeria, the Philippines, Mexico and South Korea, with Nigeria increasing 25.5 percent and Japan 18.7 percent over the previous trade season.

But a shift is likely to occur.

Two Middle East countries adversely effected by Russia's August 15th ban - Egypt and Yemen - may look to the U.S. to compensate.

PIERS data reveals that during the 2009/2010 trade year, the U.S. exported 308K MT to Egypt and 365K MT to Yemen.

This is a steep decline from the 2008 -2009 trade season.

Mario Moreno, PIERS Economist says, "It is interesting to note that Egypt was the second top importer of U.S. wheat during the 2007 – 2008 season but last year, the country barely made it to the top 20."

According to Moreno, "At a time when the U.S. trade deficit widened to an almost two year high last June, the drought in Russia feels like 'manna from heaven' for many U.S. exporters."