Russia to Lower Custom Duties on Grain Exports Starting July 1

The Russian government is set to adopt a new resolution revising the method for calculating grain export duties. The changes will be implemented before July 1, 2024, Oksana Lut, Russian Minister of Agriculture, said at the ‘All-Russian Field Day’ event.

“The Commission on Customs Duty Regulation has decided to reduce tariffs. A government resolution is anticipated to be enacted before July 1, with the revised duty rates coming into effect from that date,” said Oksana Luth.

Dmitry Patrushev, Deputy Prime Minister, announced in May that the standard export prices factored into calculations will see an increment of one thousand rubles across all grain varieties.

The ‘grain damper mechanism’ introducing variable duties on the export of wheat, corn, and barley and reallocating the recovered funds to support agricultural production has been applied since June 2, 2021. The duty rate is calculated weekly based on the value of export contracts registered on the Moscow Exchange. The duty constitutes 70% of the difference between the benchmark and the indicative price, resulting in a reduced duty rate as the benchmark price rises.