Russia's 2013 wheat crop may lag forecasts

Russia's 2013 wheat crop may come below official forecasts due to drought in some regions and a late spring in others, the head of the Grain Producers Union said on Wednesday. Russia, one of the world's key wheat exporters, had harvested 26.6 million tonnes of wheat from a third of its planted area as of July 23.
The country's wheat harvest will come between 45 and 48 million tonnes this year, up from last year's 38 million tonnes, Pavel Skurikhin, the head of the Grain Producers' Union said.