Exporting Сapacity of Ukraine in Grain Production Sector

Introduction. International trade remains extremely important in the overall complex of International Economic Relations. The grain sector is the main part of the agro-industrial complex of Ukraine. Its effectiveness has a strong influence on the welfare of the population and guarantees the national food security and export opportunities of the country. The new technologies and seed varieties usage has made it possible to reach a qualitatively new level of yield and to increase grain exports in recent years. The production of grain in Ukraine is one of the most important sources of the state wealth. Cereal crops are always the dominant culture in the world agricultural sphere as well as grain which still remains the most important and strategic agricultural product. Purpose. Nowadays it is about 25% of all foreign currency from the export which is generated by agricultural enterprises of Ukraine. This share has doubled from 13.3% to 25.9% over the past ten years. The North Africa and the Middle East remain the main markets for Ukrainian grain; Ukraine is one of the largest producers of grain in Europe, gathering 35.0-60 million tons per year. Odessa, Chernihiv, Vinnitsa, and Kharkov regions are the obvious leaders in the production of grain where the volume of cereals is more than 6% in total production. All regions export more than 50% of produced grain. It should be noted that the highest average selling price of 1 ton of grain in 2017 was recorded in Mykolayiv region (4015.1 UAH), which exceeds the average prices in Ukraine by 6%. Production, processing and export of grain in Ukraine give substantial cash incomes to the budget and are the important spheres for the employment of the population in the country. In addition, the grain industry in the country has a significant potential for development, first of all due to the availability of rich land resources and a sufficient number of skilled employees. Results. Nowadays the potential of the grain industry of Ukraine is estimated at level of 80-100 million tons of annual grain production. Ukraine has a real potential to improve its position in grain exports in the world market and make a significant contribution to overcoming the global food crisis. In order to ensure the competitiveness of grain production in the world market, it is necessary to carry out the sets of the organizational and economic measures, which should be provided on the following levels: managerial, production, marketing. Conclusions. As the efficiency of the exports formation determines the competitiveness of the national economy in the international stage, the following limiting factors should be highlighted: low level of innovation activity (Ukraine has given in the ranking from the 63rd to the 143rd not only to developed countries, but also to some countries which are still developing in 2017 in the world ranking on the global index of innovation); the high level of shadow economy (42% of GDP). In general we consider that Ukraine is one of the world’s leading exporters of grain products; the grain industry is quite competitive in the world market and has promising export opportunities