Sunseed prices remain under pressure from falling meal prices, although sunflower oil prices are fairly stable

In Ukraine, bid prices for sunflower oil have started to decline again, following a drop in palm oil prices.

A sharp rise in soybean oil prices on the Chicago exchange supported palm oil quotations but had almost no impact on sunflower oil bid prices. However, the introduction of import tariffs by Trump on goods from all countries has already caused oil prices to plummet, which will soon increase pressure on soybean and other vegetable oil prices.

Procurement prices for sunflower seeds with 50% oil content in Ukraine remain at 26,500-27,500 UAH/ton delivered to the plant. However, processors are once again operating inconsistently, with some even halting operations due to low processing margins and a shortage of raw materials, resulting in limited competition for sunflower seeds.

Export bid prices for sunflower meal at Black Sea ports remain low at 215-220 $/ton, although prices for feed corn and wheat saw a slight recovery this week after a decline, which could potentially support meal prices in the future.

Bid prices for sunflower oil delivered to Black Sea ports rose by 5-10 $/ton over the week to 1,125-1,130 $/ton but showed little reaction to a sharp 15% weekly increase in soybean oil quotations.

May soybean oil futures on the Chicago exchange rose by an additional 2.1% yesterday to 1,068 $/ton, reflecting a speculative weekly gain of 15.4%, driven by market discussions about increasing biodiesel production volumes in the U.S. in 2026.

June palm oil futures on the Bursa Malaysia exchange, after several holiday days, increased by 2.2% yesterday to 4,518 ringgit/ton, or 1,015 $/ton, though their growth will be constrained by the decline in oil prices triggered by Trump’s tariffs.

The start of a U.S. “trade war” against 60 countries worldwide will significantly impact the American and global economies, prompting markets to respond with lower prices across all commodities. Oil quotations have already fallen by 2%.