Export prices for milling wheat from the Russian Federation continued to decrease by 6 percent month-on-month in March 2024 and were down by 30 percent year-on-year, supported by the ample harvest. In Ukraine, the export prices of milling wheat (offer, f.o.b.) decreased moderately month‑on‑month in March as exports continued via Ukraine’s Black Sea corridor and land borders. In Kazakhstan, following the sharp month‑on‑month declines between October and December 2023, the export price of milling wheat remained stable for the third consecutive month in March.

In the domestic markets of the net exporting countries of the subregion, the national average retail price of wheat flour, in the Russian Federation, was stable month-on-month in March and remained close to its year-earlier level. In Ukraine, the national average retail price of wheat flour declined by 4 percent, monthly, and was about 12 percent below the previous year’s level. In Kazakhstan, the national average retail price for wheat flour held steady month-on-month and decreased marginally year-on-year, as the country announced a further six-month extension to the wheat import ban that was initially adopted in September 2023.

Across the net importing countries of the subregion, domestic wheat flour prices followed mixed trends in February and March 2024. In Armenia, the national average retail price of wheat flour was stable month-on-month in February and remained 15 percent below year‑earlier values as large import volumes in 2023 continued to bolster domestic availabilities. In Belarus, the national average retail price of wheat flour increased for the fourth consecutive month in February following a period of relative price stability between May and October 2023. Prices were up by 10 percent year-on-year, reflecting an overall increase in transport and production costs. In the Republic of Moldova, the national average retail price of wheat flour declined further in February sustaining the downward trend, which began in August 2023, and were about 10 percent below the previous year’s level due to improved supplies from higher domestic wheat production and an increase in wheat flour imports from Ukraine. In Georgia, the national average retail price of wheat flour was steady month‑on‑month in March and down by 6 percent year-on‑year, supported by higher imports in 2023. In Kyrgyzstan, the national average retail price of wheat flour was generally steady for the second consecutive month in March and were close to their year-earlier levels, following a period of steady decrease between November 2023 and January 2024. In Uzbekistan, the national average wholesale price of wheat flour was higher year‑on‑year in March.