Apr
22
Argentina Closes Wheat Exports Indefinitely
Filed Under commodity news |
Argentina has closed the wheat export registry indefinitely due to tense negotiations with farm groups aimed at avoiding a repeat of a crippling three-week farm strike last month. “Due to the negotiations between the federal government and agricultural sector regarding the product involved, the suspension (of wheat exports) will be temporarily maintained until new a new course is defined,” the Agriculture Secretariat said in a letter to grain exporters, dated Friday. Government officials and farm group leaders are scheduled to meet Tuesday for talks regarding the wheat sector. The indefinite blocking of wheat exports follows a half dozen extensions of the closure since January, when the government announced that it would free another 2 million metric tons of wheat export from the 2007-08 crop. Exporters have already declared more than 7 million metric tons of 2007-08 wheat for export, according to the Agriculture Secretariat. About 10 million metric tons are expected to be available for export, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. However, tense relations with the farm sector had led the government to block the export of wheat and beef. In addition, corn exports are being slowed by procedural barriers at customs. At the beginning of this month, farmers called a 30-day “truce” to the 21-day strike that had stalled the flow of farm goods and caused acute food shortages in the capital Buenos Aires. The blockades were lifted to facilitate talks, but farmers say they’ll resume the strike at the beginning of May if talks with the government break down.
source: Dow Jones News
Comments
One Response to “Argentina Closes Wheat Exports Indefinitely”
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.
[...] Argentina Closes Wheat Exports indefinitely until new agreement with the farmers union see the full post here: http://blog.commoditywealth.com/argentina-closes-wheat-exports-indefinitely/ [...]