Russia temporarily stopped shipping through the Don-Azov Channel, a navigable waterway linking the Don River with the Sea of Azov, three grain export industry sources told Reuters on 10 July.
Up to one-quarter of wheat exports from Russia, the world's largest exporter of the grain, pass through the Sea of Azov, market analysts said, and Russia's leading grain-producing regions, Rostov and Krasnodar, both lie along its coast.
Kerch Strait closure
One source said Russia's border guards, who report to the FSB security service, notified shipping companies that all requests for passage through the Kerch Strait would not be accepted from 6:10 p.m. local time on Friday. The notification did not say when the halt would be lifted, Reuters reported.
The Kerch Strait links the Sea of Azov and the Black Sea. Russia's second-largest port in the Black Sea region is located on the strait.
Russia's agriculture and transport ministries did not respond to a request for comment, according to Reuters.
What preceded the halt
The move followed a Ukrainian attack on 13 Russian vessels in the Sea of Azov on Friday, including 10 tankers, Reuters reported.
Ukraine has recently intensified attacks on Russian petroleum refineries, triggering fuel shortages across the country, Reuters reported.
Market reaction
Euronext wheat rose as much as 4 percent on Friday to a six-week high, as talk circulated in the market about a possible closure of shipping through the Sea of Azov.
Analysts and international organizations have warned about risks to global grain trade from the war in Ukraine, because the Black Sea is used by both Ukraine and Russia for grain exports, though there have been no major disruptions to the grain trade over four and a half years of war, according to Reuters.
