Kazakhstan: Sowing in the main grain regions of Kazakhstan goes behind last year’s rates

Due to unfavourable weather conditions in the northern regions of Kazakhstan, namely due to rains, the sowing is behind the figures of the past year by 22%.

If we consider the figures for the region, as of the end of May in the North Kazakhstan region, cereal crops were sown on the territory of 1.7 million hectares, which is 63.5% of the total number of areas allocated for this type of crops. But, it should be also recalled that in the previous year as of June 1 in this region, cereals were sown on 85.3% of the territory.

Also, as of specified date 78.8% of the areas allocated for oil crops have already been sown, which is a little less than 788 thousand hectares.

According to the information provided by IA «Kazakh-Zerno», 4.1 million hectares are allocated for agricultural crops, 2.6 million hectares of which are allocated for cereals and leguminous crops.

In the main grain regions of Kazakhstan, such as the Kostanai and North Kazakhstan regions, sowing is lagging behind last year’s pace. This is mainly caused by adverse weather conditions such as the drought that affected these regions in the spring. This situation may adversely affect the yield of grain crops this year.

Specialists and market participants expect a decrease in grain production in Kazakhstan this year, due to the backlog of sowing. However, a positive factor could be an increase in grain prices on world markets, which can compensate for some losses.

Despite this, Kazakhstan is still one of the largest producers and exporters of grain in the world, and its role in the global grain market remains significant.