Russia has increased its wheat exports by further 50% compared to the last year. That may undermine US agriculture which has been steadily declining, The Wall Street Journal reports.
The data available in June evidences that this year Russia exported over 40 million tons of wheat. That is a world record for over 25 years. Even though the US is a major wheat exporter, it is now lagging behind Russia.
“Russia became world’s largest wheat exporter in 2016 and then in 2018”, the daily notes.
The fact is painful for the US where the largest since the 1980s shut-down of farms is now observed.
“Russian wheat has got an essential competitive advantage. It is cheaper than that from the US since wheat production costs in Russia are lower and incomes of Russian farmers are modest”, Natalia Chizh, agricultural and food markets expert, says. “Yet there is no ground for gloating. Because of their low profits, Russian farmers for years have been unable to upgrade their capacities and purchase modern machinery and other equipment. That generates a negative effect in both immediate and distant future”, she notes.