OREANDA-NEWS. On May 27, 2008 at governmental sitting Karim Massimov, Kazakh Prime-Minister, commissioned Akhylbek Kurishbayev, Minister of Agriculture, with reporting twice monthly on the situation in the domestic grain market, and indicated that if the market is threatened, a ban on export of flour will be introduced “at any moment”, reported the Official website http://en.government.kz. 

“If we face a threat, we can at any moment introduce the flour export ban”, Karim Massimov said to the Agriculture Minister. “Right now there is no need to take such decision”, he added.

According to Agrominister Kurishbayev, “these days there is no need to close down the flour export”. “On the one hand we have to care about grain processors, and we shouldn’t cast away the marketing outlets we have won”, the Minister believes. “But if need arises, measures will be taken”, he emphasized.

“We need to create all the necessary conditions to promote agro producers’ entering the external markets directly, and this can be achieved through establishing a grain exchange. At the present time grain is sold to foreign markets by 280 licensed exporters, with small and medium intermediary companies responsible for about 20% of the grain export market which is almost 1.5 million tones per annum”, Minister said.

According to the Minister, availability of grain exchange will allow making forward transactions – which is important for preliminary analysis of grain production – and will also allow futures deals. "This will help predict the situation at the grain market and ensure a guaranteed sale of grain at fixed prices”, he said.

Minister Kurishbayev also proposed to “create electronic trading floors at Kazagromarketing Universal Commodity Exchange”. He said that these proposals – aimed at sorting out of the exports – arise from the need to deal with constantly growing amounts of the exports and forecasted increase in global imports of wheat.