Ukrainian grain traders are irked by new parliament bill: Ukrainian traders’ union UGA has expressed concern over the Ukranian parliament’s “ill considered” plans to reshuffle grain trading rules, claiming that the changes could lead to a complete halt to exports, Reuters reported. Last week, a new bill proposing changes to taxes on grain exports and a minimum export price for grain passed its first reading. The new law is supposed to limit tax evasion on select agricultural products, the newswire said.

UGA has noted that some of the proposed changes are impossible to put into effect and may result in losses to both traders and farmers, Reuters explained. The law may lead to a complete stop to exports if passed, UGA said in a statement cited by the newswire. The trade union also described the proposed mechanism for determining minimum export price as “unenforceable,” noting that global prices were the real market movers.

Background: Ukraine was the world’s fourth-largest global supplier of grain prior to Russia’s invasion of the country in February 2022. Since then the country has faced an uphill battle getting its exports to global markets, with a UN-brokered Black Sea grain pact with Russia falling apart in mid-July and subsequent unilateral measures by Ukraine leading to frequent attacks on the country’s grain-exporting infrastructure.

But despite the challenges, Ukraine’s exports via the Black Sea are gaining traction: The new militarily protected shipping corridor being used to transport grain to ports on the Black Sea has given impetus to its grain exports, the Washington Post reports. Ukrainian agricultural exporter Agroprosperis Group has shipped over 300k metric tons of grain to Egypt, Spain, China, Bangladesh, the Netherlands, Tunisia, and Turkey, since mid-September, the company said.

But Ukraine wants more security:Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has called for more air defenses to protect his country’s grain export routes from Russian attacks, Reuters reports. The president made the plea during an international summit on food security in Kyiv,

Another milestone for autonomous shipping: A Ro-Ro vessel, dubbed Hokuren Maru No. 2, and operated by Japanese shipping line Kawasaki Kasen Kaisha (K-Line) has completed a 1.6k km roundtrip using an autonomous navigation system, Splash reports. The system was used to navigate, while proposing avoidance routes, and controlling steering to safely avoid other vessels. K-line developed the autonomous navigation system in partnership with communication technology outfit Japan Radio Co.

South Korea is also at the new sector’s vanguard:Late August saw South Korean shipyard Hyundai Samho Heavy Industries deliver an LNG-powered capesize bulk carrier fitted with artificial intelligence (AI)-based equipment monitoring and safety systems. The vessel, dubbed Namu 2, integrates two autonomous systems — HiCBM and HiCAMS — which monitor the ship’s status in real time. The American Bureau of Shipping has approved both systems for use on ships.

ALSO WORTH KNOWING-

  • South Korea and the UK plan to launch talks for a new trade agreementduring a visit between President Yoon Suk Yeol and UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. (Reuters)
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