Ukraine's acting agriculture minister has cut the country's 2017/18 grain export forecast to around 41 million tonnes from 42 million tonnes previously, mainly due to transport problems, Interfax Ukraine news agency quoted Maksym Martyniuk as saying on Friday. "We forecast exports at 41 million tonnes. The risk factor for the implementation of this forecast is the growing problems with logistics and a shortage of wagons and locomotives is especially acute," Martyniuk said.

The ministry of agriculture has said Ukraine's grain harvest this year totalled 62.3 million tonnes, down from a record 66 million tonnes in 2016. Earlier this year the ministry said export could include 16.5 million tonnes of wheat. The country had exported 19.5 million tonnes of grain as of Dec. 21, including 11 million tonnes of wheat, 3.8 million tonnes of barley and about 4.7 million tonnes of maize.

Ukraine exported around 44 million tonnes of grain, including 17.4 million tonnes of wheat in the 2016/17 season.

Copyright Reuters, 2017