Kremlin admits lack of progress on BRICS grain exchange

There has been no progress so far on the creation of a BRICS grain exchange, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on September 12 at the group’s summit in New Delhi. Russian Agriculture Minister Oksana Lut, meanwhile, said Moscow continues to discuss the project with the UAE, but the platform has yet to move to a practical launch.

Russia proposed the exchange initiative in 2024, and it was later backed in the BRICS Kazan Declaration. One of the main goals was to create independent grain price benchmarks reflecting supply and demand within BRICS countries and reduce reliance on quotations from Western commodity exchanges. The grain platform was eventually expected to expand to other agricultural commodities and later develop into a broader commodity exchange.

Another objective was to facilitate direct transactions between major grain producers and buyers within BRICS. The project was also linked to wider use of national currencies and the creation of independent payment and settlement infrastructure. For Russia, this is particularly important amid sanctions and its dependence on Western financial, insurance and exchange systems in international trade.

The potential market is substantial: BRICS countries account for around 44% of global grain production and nearly a quarter of global grain exports. Russian proponents of the project expected such a share to allow the platform to establish its own international price benchmarks and strengthen the bloc’s influence on global agricultural markets.

However, two years after the initiative was endorsed, the exchange has still not moved to the launch stage. BRICS countries continue to discuss how the platform should operate, meaning the proposed alternative center for agricultural pricing and trade remains at the concept-development stage.

Tags: Russia, grain, wheat