MOSCOW, July 22 (Reuters) - Russian wheat export prices
were unchanged last week, shipment volumes are still low and
farmers are not in a hurry to sell at current low levels,
analysts say.
    The price of 12.5% protein Russian new crop wheat scheduled
free-on-board (FOB) with delivery in late August was $219 per
metric ton at the end of last week, just like the previous week,
according to the IKAR consultancy.
    Sovecon put the price of wheat with a protein content of
12.5% for the nearest delivery at $220-$222 per ton at the end
of last week, slightly above $219-$222 per ton FOB a week
before.
    Large buyers stepped in last week: a large batch of Russian
wheat - 720,000 tons - was purchased by Egypt's GASC at $221 per
ton FOB. Traders believe that Algeria also bought 70,000-750,000
tons of wheat from the Black Sea region.
    Prices in Russian ports remain low and farmers are in no
hurry to sell, especially not in southern regions, Sovecon
analysts wrote.
    "Bid and offer spreads are wide. Buyers are lowering bids
aggressively while farmers, looking at relatively low yields in
the centre and Volga, are not rushing to sell."
    IKAR said on Friday that it had cut its forecast for the
2024 grain harvest to 128 million tons from 129.5 million tons
and its grain export forecast for the season 2024/25 to 55
million tons from 55.5 million tons. The wheat crop forecast
remained unchanged.
    Today, the government of another region of the Russian
Federation - Zabaikalye - announced the introduction of a state
of emergency in four districts due to drought.
    Russia started harvesting several weeks early due to weather
conditions. As of July 12 Russian farmers had harvested 32.0
million tons of grain against 12.2 million tons a year earlier,
from 8.4 million hectares, up from a previous 3.3 million
hectares.
    The average yield was 3.80 tons per hectare, up from 3.75
tons a hectare the year before. 
    The wheat harvest totalled 27.4 million tons, up from 7.3
million tons, from 7.0 million hectares, against 1.9 million
hectares, with an average yield of 3.94 tons per hectare, versus
3.83 tons, Sovecon said.
    Temperatures are predicted to be hotter than normal in the
south, the southern Volga, and the southern centre this week;
around normal or colder in the Volga Valley and the Urals;
around normal or higher in Siberia. Rain in the Volga could be
very beneficial for sunflower and corn, Sovecon noted.
    Russia is the world's largest wheat exporter. Its exports
increased to 0.71 million tons of grain last week from 0.60
million the week before.
    Shipments included 0.66 million tons of wheat, up from 0.51
million tons a week earlier, Sovecon wrote, citing port data.
    Sovecon raised its wheat export forecast for July by 0.1
million tons compared to last week to 2.9 million tons, compared
to a record 4.5 million tons a year ago. 
   Other Russian data provided by Sovecon and IKAR:

 Product:              Most recent data:  Change from a week
                                                     earlier
 - Domestic 3rd class      13,725 rbls/t         -250 rbls/t
 wheat, European part                     
 of Russia, excludes                      
 delivery (Sovecon)                       
 - Sunflower seeds         31,375 rbls/t         -325 rbls/t
 (Sovecon)                                
 - Domestic sunflower      77,350 rbls/t            0 rbls/t
 oil (Sovecon)                            
 - Domestic soybeans       40,400 rbls/t         +100 rbls/t
 (Sovecon)                                
 - Export sunflower               $895/t                -$10
 oil (IKAR)                               
 - White sugar,                $686.16/t            -$1.42/t
 Russia's south                                             
 (IKAR)                                   
 
    
 (Reporting by Olga Popova
Editing by Gleb Bryanski and Peter Graff)