EU to retain title of top wheat exporter in 2015-16

Aided by constraints facing the U.S. and the former Soviet Union, the EU is expected to retain its spot as the world’s top wheat exporter in the 2015/16 season, according to Canadian grains giant CWB. The company expects EU wheat exports to reach a record 32.35m tons in 2015/16, propelled by a decent harvest and a soft euro. These forecasts come in contradiction to what the EU itself has projected – a 10% drop from this year’s 31.5 million tons of export to 28.3 million tons.

The EU’s competitors in the global wheat market are facing their own challenges in 2015/16. This year, U.S. exports have been constrained by a strong U.S. dollar to 24.5 million tons but are expected to grow to 26.6 million tons in 2015/16. Production in the former Soviet Union will drop from 2014 highs in 2015/16, causing exports to drop as well. The CWB expects Ukraine’s wheat exports to drop 12% to 9.7 million tons and Russian exports, impacted by further government restrictions, are expected to drop 2.4 million tons to 17.6 million tons.

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