Kazakhstan prices on wheat not to exceed last year's level

Astana, 19 July (Khabar) - The minister for agriculture Akylbek Kyrishbayev
has announced that prices on wheat in the republic will not exceed last year
's level despite a good harvest being expected in the Akmola, Kostanai and
North Kazakhstan regions with, according to the department of agriculture,
91% of crops in satisfactory condition. However there won't be as big a
demand for Kazakhstan wheat on the market as last year, the minister noted.

Akylbek Kurishbayev, minister for agriculture, RK:
- Due to the good harvest of wheat in Ukraine and Russia the export
potential of these countries is very high and until they dispatch their
wheat we will not be able to take our grain there. The demand for Kazakhstan
wheat will only increase after new year so we can conclude that the level of
prices in Kazakhstan will not be higher that last year.

This year the Production Corporation is to buy 400 thousand tones of wheat
for the state reserves in order to regulate prices and provide for regions
that could face a deficit of bread. 1 million tones of grain will also be
bought for commercial resources. According to the president of the
Production Corporation Ruslan Azimov, this year the purchasing of grain will
be in conditions of competition with the companies-exporters so he has asked
heads of regions to help in the organizing of purchasing the grain without
nipping the economic interests of producers.
According to the data of the city council, the preparations for harvesting
in the Northern regions are going according to plan and in the South are
about to be finished. Issues of providing farmers with diesel fuel at
acceptable prices have been solved.

Akylbek Kurishbayev, minister for agriculture, RK:
- This year the amount of allocated diesel fuel is 389 thousand tones,
compared with 360 thousand last year. The average price including delivery
is 84 tenge per litre but the average price on the market is 105 tenge per
litre. I have asked head deputies and heads of regional departments to
deliver the diesel fuel by the beginning of harvesting.

The minister has charged local executive departments to provide authenticity
of the accountability of the collected grain and scientist to prepare
recommendations on the harvesting and to render it to producers. Akylbek
Kurishbayev has noted that in order to raise agriculture to a new level
priority crops should be sown, and they should produce mineral fertilizing,
use modern water safe technologies and prepare highly qualified staff. Three
centres of qualification in the agriculture sphere will be opened by the 1st
of September.