Ukraine corn trade stalls as port attacks disrupt shipments, deter buyers

Ukraine's corn market has stalled as repeated attacks on ports and infrastructure delay shipments, limit ship availability and weaken buyer interest, traders said July 20.

Spot trade from the region has effectively stopped, with buyers increasingly turning to alternative origins amid uncertainty over freight and execution risk. Several corn shipments to destinations including Turkey have been delayed following the attacks.

Traders said a missile struck the Golden Leo, carrying about 8,000 metric tons of corn, July 19. India's government said the ship was attacked while departing the Odesa port. Its Ministry of External Affairs said that India "reiterates that targeting commercial shipping and endangering innocent civilian crew members, or otherwise impeding freedom of navigation and commerce, is deplorable and should be avoided."

Market sources said a missile hit the MV Star Venture, a Bunge vessel carrying 31,000 mt of corn, while it was at anchor July 15. The vessel was scheduled to load corn from Chornomorsk for shipment to Italy.

Continued attacks have made buyers reluctant to purchase Ukrainian corn, as shipowners are increasingly unwilling to call at Ukrainian loading ports, traders said.

"It is a complicated issue," a broker in Turkey said. "I don't know how they are going to handle this situation. There is almost nothing available for spot corn shipment. Some vessels are staying at loading ports, and owners do not want to go to loading ports."

An importer in Turkey said his corn shipment would be delayed and was now expected to arrive in August.

"We can't buy anything from Ukraine and Russia now, and maybe not until September," the importer said.

An Italian importer said buyers were unwilling to pay elevated prices despite delays to scheduled loadings and contracts, citing comfortable inventories and weak consumption.

"Nobody is buying at high prices, because even if projected loadings or contracts are stuck, there is no shortage of physical supply," the importer said.

A Dubai-based trader echoed the weak demand for Black Sea corn.

"From our end, no one is taking Black Sea corn now," the trader said.

Buyers had already begun switching to South American corn in many destination markets before the latest escalation, largely because of quality considerations. The disruption has further weakened the competitiveness of Ukrainian corn, with freight uncertainty and high offers from a limited number of sellers weighing on market activity.

The transition to new-crop corn has also pressured the market, with many Ukrainian sellers having already moved away from old-crop supply. One Ukrainian seller said old-crop corn had been sold, but exports remained difficult because freight from Ukraine was unavailable.

"We have finished with old-crop corn, but we cannot export it now because we do not have freight from Ukraine," the seller said. "If the situation does not change in the coming weeks, exports from Ukraine will not stop completely, but they will remain very difficult."

Platts assessed Ukraine corn FOB POC at $228/mt and corn from Romania and Bulgaria FOB CVB at $236/mt July 20, both for Aug. 17-31 shipment.