The opening of a new grain corridor has significantly in-creased exports

From 1-15 December, 2023 Ukraine exported 3.38 M mt of agricultural products, which is a 20% increase compared to the 1-15 December, 2022. In December, agricultural product exports are expected to surpass 6 M mt.

According to line-up and customs data, in 1-15 December, the share of land exports in total exports decreased to 14.1% due to growing shipments through Big Odessa seaports. The share of Danube ports the lowest for the entire year of 2023.

Road transport exports 

In October-December 2023, the rate of agricultural product exports by road decreased due to ongo-ing strikes in neighbouring countries. At present, there is a queue of almost 4,000 trucks waiting to enter Ukraine from Poland. The Ministry of Infrastructure of Ukraine has stated that Ukraine and Poland may reach a common position on border closures by the end of the year. Vegetable oils are still the primary commodity transported by road for export.

Exports by rail

Rail exports in the first weeks of December are only slightly behind the pace of previous months. The forecast for total rail exports in December is 800-900K mt, which is consistent with the average of the last four months. Rail exports remain high, and the cargoes have not yet been redirected to seaports.

As of December 19th, approximately 6.6 K wagons with grain (or about 400 K mt) were en route to Ukraine’s seaports, which is almost a thousand wagons more than the previous week.

Big Odesa and Danube ports 

In 1-15 December, exports through the ports of the Danube Region totalled only 0.56 M mt, which is significantly less than the previous month. Exporters are finding the Danube region less attractive due to the availability of a much cheaper option for exports through Odesa ports.

The Romanian port of Constanta set a new record for grain shipments, with 32.6 M mt shipped be-tween January and November. 2023. Ukrainian with 13 M mt of grain made up 40% of the total trans-shipment. In 2022, 8.6 M mt of agricultural products from Ukraine were transshipped through the port of Constanza.