Wheat prices: According to the Chicago SRW Wheat Futures (global wheat benchmark) wheat prices rose over 50% in the period when the conflict began (Feb 2022) to May 2022. This was primarily due to a complete halt of grain shipments from Ukraine (7th largest wheat producer). This was consequently resolved in the Black Sea Grain Initiative resulting in a 20% decrease of global crop prices
In July 2023, Russia quit the initiative and continues to use air attacks against ships heading to Ukraine.
The current price reflected by the benchmark is even lower than pre invasion suggesting traders are not fearful about worsening global Food Security
Ruble - Russia faced a currency crisis and a flurry of sanctions in the wake of the invasion. RUB/USD fell around 24% between February and March 2021 however these effects seem to have consequently stabilized and by September 2022 the Ruble had reached above pre-war levels. However, between November 2022 and August 2023 RUB/USD plummeted again and fell by around 31.25%. One of the main factors driving this depreciation is the mounting sanctions the Russian economy faced, resulting in reduced trade particularly in regard to energy exports and a lack of access to foreign reserve meaning the Russian central bank had less influence on FX markets.
