Russian raw sugar imports rose 32.6 percent to 2,533,700 tonnes in the first eight months of 2005 from 1,911,400 tonnes in the same period of 2004, the Federal Customs Service (FCS) said on Monday.
Imports in August declined to 83,100 tonnes from 563,700 tonnes in July and 627,600 in June, when imports were high due to seasonal purchases by soft drinks and ice cream producers.
Russian raw sugar imports fell sharply to 2.6 million tonnes in 2004 from 4.1 million in 2003 following the introduction of a floating import tariff instead of a tariff quota, while refining from domestic beets increased.
Some analysts say imports may rise to over 3 million tonnes this year, despite an expected high domestic sugar beet output.
An FCS statement said Russian imports of white sugar, cocoa beans, coffee and tea from outside the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) rose in the first eight months of 2005.