Bloomberg
By Megan Durisin, Francois De Beaupuy, and Souhail Karam
France is banking on a pickup in exports to draw down its mountain of wheat.
The European Union’s top producer has seen soft-wheat exports outside the bloc lag last season’s pace, as sluggish demand from Algeria offset bigger purchases from sub-Saharan Africa and China, according to FranceAgriMer. Still, the crops office on Wednesday raised its export outlook for the full season and said shippers expect sales to top customer Algeria to recover.
Finding overseas buyers for one of France’s biggest ever crops will be key to reducing stockpiles forecast to end the season at a three-year high. While competition between major exporters in the EU and Black Sea region is expected to remain tough, there are signs that French grain is becoming more appealing, particularly to importers outside the bloc.
French Wheat Exports
Agency boosted its forecast for this season’s soft-wheat sales abroad
