Shares in Trigon Agri recovered from a near-two year low as the farm operator revealed it had backpedalled over withholding grain, and had sold its Ukraine wheat harvest, as an export ban was confirmed.

Ukraine's agriculture minister, Mykola Prysyazhnyuk, on Wednesday confirmed last week's market talk that the Black Sea grain giant was to ban exports from November 15, to protect domestic supplies after a drought-hit harvest.

"There will be a government order about this. We are not playing games here. We do not have any other option," Mr Prysyazhnyuk said, although a spokesman for Ukraine's prime minister later threw the situation back into doubt by saying that no decision had been made.

However, Trigon Agri said that it would not be affected by curbs, "having completed sales of its wheat crop from 2012 harvest in Ukraine.

"The company's financial results for the financial year 2012 will not be influenced by the planned export ban of wheat announced today," the company said.

Shares in the Stockholm-listed group, which closed the last session at their lowest since December 2012, stood 1.7% higher at SEK6.00 in late deals.

'Plan to hold on to inventory'

The announcement by the group, which harvested 87,000 hectares in Russia and Ukraine this year, appears at odds with a statement over the summer saying that it was to hold on for higher prices.

"We plan to hold on to inventory in particular in Ukraine, where we feel that the risk of export restrictions is much lower than in Russia, in order to take advantage of the price rises we expect to see," Joakim Helenius, the Trigon Agri chairman, said on August 31.

"Fears of export restrictions have stopped Russian and Ukrainian prices from rising anywhere near as much as international prices.

"Over the last three and a half months, the wheat price in Chicago has increased by 47% compared to an increase in Ukraine of 9% and in Russia of 25%."

However, the strategy was questioned by many observers, including a boss at a rival farm operator Agrimoney.com spoke to last week, given the growing likelihood of export curbs, which deny producers access to international markets and generally higher prices.