Wheat prices drop as Russia returns to Ukraine grain deal

Moscow announced that it had resumed its participation in the deal which was suspended after an attack on a Russian port last week

Wheat futures dropped over 6% on Wednesday after the Russian Defense Ministry announced the country had resumed its participation in the deal on the export of Ukrainian grain via the Black Sea.

The value of December wheat futures on the Chicago Exchange dropped by 6.32% to $8.45 per bushel as of 10:00 GMT. The rally later subsided, but wheat was still down 5.5% for the day at $8.53 a bushel around noon, according to trading data.

Corn futures were also down 2.4% at $6.80 a bushel, as were oat futures, dropping 2.61% to $3.89 a bushel.

The grain deal, brokered by the UN and Türkiye, was signed in July. It was meant to help unlock agricultural exports via the Black Sea from Russia and Ukraine, blocked due to the military conflict between the two states.

Moscow suspended its participation in the deal last week after the Russian military accused Ukraine of using the grain corridor for an attack on the Russian port of Sevastopol. The decision resulted in a spike in grain prices, with wheat jumping almost 8% at the opening of trading on Monday.

However, Moscow agreed to reverse the suspension earlier on Wednesday, after Kiev presented it with written guarantees that it would not use the corridor for military purposes.

READ MORE: Russia resumes participation in grain deal – Defense Ministry

“It was possible to obtain the necessary written guarantees from Ukraine not to use the humanitarian corridor and Ukrainian ports designated for the export of agricultural products for combat operations against Russia,” the Defense Ministry said in a statement.

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