SAO PAULO: Brazil is poised to register record wheat shipments for January as local suppliers continue to fill the void left by major exporters Russia and Ukraine because of the ongoing war, industry sources told Reuters.
The combination of a bumper harvest and production hiccups in Argentina due to a drought also bolstered Brazilian exporters, particularly in Rio Grande do Sul, the country’s biggest wheat producer, they said.
Based on shipping schedules, the National Association of Cereal Exporters (Anec) projected wheat exports at 803,800 tons for January.
If confirmed, the volume will represent a new historic high for the month, compared to the previous record of 695,900 tons registered in January 2022, according to Anec data.
“Brazil is a big producer and exporter of grains. As you earn credibility from the soybean trade, you begin to expand to other products,” Anec Director-General Sergio Mendes told Reuters.
According to Mendes, grain importers see Brazil as a reliable supplier, and this favors exporters.
Indonesia, Saudi Arabia and Sudan buy around 50 percent of Brazilian wheat exports. Vietnam is also a prominent buyer, Mendes noted.
“The maintenance of shipments to these countries with whom we maintain good commercial relations leads to the belief that things are progressing,” Mendes said about Brazil’s inroads in global markets.
StoneX, a consultancy, projects Brazilian shipments of 3 million tons of wheat for the 2022/23 season, from August 2022 to July this year, stable from the previous cycle’s record.
Brazil’s growing wheat exports, however, still pale in comparison to Ukraine’s 13 million ton export estimated by United States Department of Agriculture for the 2022/2023 season.
Over the entire 2022/23 July-June marketing season, world top exporter Russia faced complications to sell wheat because of Western sanctions.
But despite Russia’s involvement in the war, its wheat export forecast for 2022/2023 is estimated at 44.1 million tons, representing a 10 million ton rise from the previous cycle, according to SovEcon agriculture consultancy.
Brazil wheat making strides in global markets amid Russia-Ukraine conflict
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Brazil wheat making strides in global markets amid Russia-Ukraine conflict
- Indonesia, Saudi Arabia and Sudan buy around 50 percent of Brazilian wheat exports
Kuwait to boost Islamic finance with sukuk regulation
- The move supports sustainable financing and is part of Kuwait’s efforts to diversify its oil-dependent economy
RIYADH: Kuwait is planning to introduce legislation to regulate the issuance of sukuk, or Islamic bonds, both domestically and internationally, as part of efforts to support more sustainable financing for the oil-rich Gulf nation, Prime Minister Sheikh Ahmad Abdullah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah said on Wednesday.
Speaking at the World Governments Summit in Dubai, Al-Sabah highlighted that Kuwait is exploring a variety of debt instruments to diversify its economy. The country has been implementing fiscal reforms aimed at stimulating growth and controlling its budget deficit amid persistently low oil prices. Hydrocarbons continue to dominate Kuwait’s revenue stream, accounting for nearly 90 percent of government income in 2024.
The Gulf Cooperation Council’s debt capital market is projected to exceed $1.25 trillion by 2026, driven by project funding and government initiatives, representing a 13.6 percent expansion, according to Fitch Ratings.
The region is expected to remain one of the largest sources of US dollar-denominated debt and sukuk issuance among emerging markets. Fitch also noted that cross-sector economic diversification, refinancing needs, and deficit funding are key factors behind this growth.
“We are about to approve the first legislation regulating issuance of government sukuk locally and internationally, in accordance with Islamic laws,” Al-Sabah said.
“This enables us to deal with financial challenges flexibly and responsibly, and to plan for medium and long-term finances.”
Kuwait returned to global debt markets last year with strong results, raising $11.25 billion through a three-part bond sale — the country’s first US dollar issuance since 2017 — drawing substantial investor demand. In March, a new public debt law raised the borrowing ceiling to 30 billion dinars ($98 billion) from 10 billion dinars, enabling longer-term borrowing.
The Gulf’s debt capital markets, which totaled $1.1 trillion at the end of the third quarter of 2025, have evolved from primarily sovereign funding tools into increasingly sophisticated instruments serving governments, banks, and corporates alike. As diversification efforts accelerate and refinancing cycles intensify, regional issuers have become regular participants in global debt markets, reinforcing the GCC’s role in emerging-market capital flows.
In 2025, GCC countries accounted for 35 percent of all emerging-market US dollar debt issuance, excluding China, with growth in US dollar sukuk issuance notably outpacing conventional bonds. The region’s total outstanding debt capital markets grew more than 14 percent year on year, reaching $1.1 trillion.
