Category: Freight

Improved Port Efficiency: Daily grain railcar unloading at Greater Odesa ports rose to 1,274 units (+1.1% WoW), while the railcar queue fell to 7,948 units. Stronger Grain Flow: Average daily railcar loading toward Greater Odesa surged 38% to 1,140 cars per day, signaling robust export program support. Logistics Cost Support: Reduced congestion may compress inland…

Streamlined Trade: Kazakhstan and China signed a joint Protocol to simplify and standardize agricultural export procedures under the SCO framework. Supply Predictability: Alignment with international standards is expected to enhance shipment predictability and unlock Kazakhstan’s export potential to China. Quality Assurance: Deeper cooperation on product quality control and safety aims to remove trade barriers and…

State-owned grain railcars handled only 9.8% of total grain loadings in April, underscoring reliance on private operators. Roughly 3,500 grain shipments were completed in April, with May volumes to be allocated via Prozorro.Sale auctions. Four long-term grain rail contracts are in advanced stages, with execution expected from April–May, potentially lifting state rail market share. Current…

Strong grain exports: Russian grain transshipment surged 39.4% year-on-year in Q1 2026 to 13.1 million tonnes, underscoring robust export demand and improved port efficiency. Mixed cargo performance: Mineral fertilizer volumes fell 3.8% and bulk food cargo dropped 4.1%, partially offsetting gains from grain within overall port activity. Muted overall growth: Total cargo turnover at Russian…

Tax Hike: Malaysia will raise its crude palm oil export tax to the maximum 10% in May, up from 9.5% in April. Price Surge: The crude palm oil reference price jumps 14.9% month-on-month to 4,522 ringgit/tonne from 3,935 ringgit/tonne. Tight Markets: Maximum tax threshold is triggered as prices exceed 4,050 ringgit/tonne, signaling tighter global vegetable…

Policy support: Kazakhstan plans partial compensation for farmer grain transport costs to ease financial pressure and support exports. Stronger volumes: Q1 2026 rail grain freight rose 15.4% YoY to 4.1 million tons, with exports up 17.5% to 3.3 million tons. Freight upside: Subsidized transport could boost rail flows and enhance Kazakh grain competitiveness in regional…

Policy Shift: Russia introduced an additional tariff quota for grain exports outside the Eurasian Economic Union for the 2025/26 marketing year. Supply Outlook: Rosstat revised the 2025 grain harvest up to 141.2 million tonnes, signaling ample domestic supply and export potential. Base Quota Intact: The main 20 million tonne export quota remains in place from…

Capacity Surge: Rail freight on the Xi’an-Baku route via Kazakhstan rose 2.5x year-on-year in Q1 2026, with 85 trains versus 34 in Q1 2025. Faster Transit: Average delivery time on the corridor improved 25%, dropping from 20 days to 15 days. Logistics Impact: Neutral to slightly bullish for Black Sea logistics, adding an alternative corridor…

Flows Easing: Early April Ukrainian agricultural road exports averaged 9.2 thousand tons per day, slipping from more stable March levels. Route Concentration: Polish and Romanian corridors dominate shipments, handling the bulk of daily volumes despite rising volatility. Volatility Up: Daily exports peaked at 10-11 thousand tons mid-period before falling to 7.5-8 thousand tons, signaling less…

Bullish for Indonesian palm oil exports: February shipments rose 17% year-on-year to 2.69 million tonnes, with October–February volumes up 19% to 12.23 million tonnes. Bearish for Black Sea vegetable oils: Strong Indonesian supply and competitive pricing are crowding out sunflower oil in key markets like China and the EU, potentially pressuring Black Sea freight and margins. China…