Russia Lifts Ban One-Year on Grain Exports

 　　Russia, once the world's third largest wheat exporter, is returning to the international grain market after a one-year gap caused by severe crop losses.

　　Moscow stopped selling wheat last year after catastrophic fires and drought destroyed one-third of the country’s crop.  The Kremlin banned exports to assure there would be adequate grain supplies for the domestic market, but this year's crop was better than expected, and foreign sales of Russian wheat are resuming.

　　Andrei Sizov is an executive at SovEcon, an agricultural consulting firm in Moscow that focuses on market news from Russia and the surrounding region.  He is confident that this year’s Russian harvest will result in millions of tons of surplus grain for export, but says it may be difficult for the country to regain¹ its stature² in export markets immediately.

　　"We expect that total Russia grain export will be around 15 million tons, maybe some more," said Sizov.  "It will depend on demand and world prices."

　　That export forecast depends on a total Russian harvest of 85-90 million tons of grain this year.  Based on rainfall in May and June, meteorologists do not expect a repeat of last year’s drought conditions.

　　Yuri Khramtsov, manager of a farm in the Kursk region, expects a strong crop this year.

　　Depending on the weather, he says, average Russian wheat harvests range from 3 to 4.7 tons of grain per hectare.

　　This year, Khramtsov says, favorable weather conditions will ensure his farm's yield will be over 4 tons per hectare.

　　Russian officials say they intend to monitor domestic conditions closely as the country's exports increase.  If prices start to rise at home, they say they have six million tons of grain in reserve to stabilize³ prices.

1 regain   

vt.重新获得，收复，恢复

参考例句：

• He is making a bid to regain his World No.1 ranking.他正为重登世界排名第一位而努力。
• The government is desperate to regain credibility with the public.政府急于重新获取公众的信任。

2 stature   

n.（高度）水平，（高度）境界，身高，身材

参考例句：

• He is five feet five inches in stature.他身高5英尺5英寸。
• The dress models are tall of stature.时装模特儿的身材都较高。

3 stabilize   

vt.（使）稳定，使稳固，使稳定平衡；vi.稳定

参考例句：

• They are eager to stabilize currencies.他们急于稳定货币。
• His blood pressure tended to stabilize.他的血压趋向稳定。