- Location
- Chichester
Grain markets reacted wildly to the emerging crisis in Ukraine and will continue to do so. Futures price swings are being driven by stop-losses, enormous margin calls and forced position closures rather than any meaningful interpretation of events on the ground. Most traders limited activity to immediate delivery positions and left the forward markets well alone. Given the uncertainty of the actual situation, another similar week lies ahead. The disruption of financial systems, Black Sea Port closures and the likelihood of ‘force majeure‘ being called on some contracts all contribute to a substantial halting of normal trading activity.
Russia now appears determined to take full control of Ukraine, but has so far made only fitful progress towards that objective. The fear this week must be that an increasingly frustrated Kremlin casts an eye towards its wide-ranging arsenal of weaponry, far more powerful and destructive than anything so far deployed. In any event, it is very difficult to envisage an early resolution to the conflict which could easily now drag on for many months in some form. This last point of course projects the crisis beyond the short-term shipping challenges and towards the potential for lost crops from the 2022 harvest.
Perhaps the only thing we can say today with certainty, is that our own agricultural Industry now has a renewed responsibility to actively nurture and secure the best possible crops we can achieve this summer.
Have a good week.
Russia now appears determined to take full control of Ukraine, but has so far made only fitful progress towards that objective. The fear this week must be that an increasingly frustrated Kremlin casts an eye towards its wide-ranging arsenal of weaponry, far more powerful and destructive than anything so far deployed. In any event, it is very difficult to envisage an early resolution to the conflict which could easily now drag on for many months in some form. This last point of course projects the crisis beyond the short-term shipping challenges and towards the potential for lost crops from the 2022 harvest.
Perhaps the only thing we can say today with certainty, is that our own agricultural Industry now has a renewed responsibility to actively nurture and secure the best possible crops we can achieve this summer.
Have a good week.