World export commitments rose by more than 700,000 tons between mid-January and mid-March and reached an estimated 51 million tons, or 88% of projected exports during 1996/97. The volume of new sales made from mid-January to mid-March 1997 was smallerthan in the period between December and January but was still larger than average sales made between September and December. 1996/97 remaining sales, estimated at 700,000 tons or 12% of total exports, are larger than in the two most recent seasons. However, as a share of total exports, sales remaining this season are smaller than in the years prior to 1994/95; sales remaining as ofmid-March in 1990/91 through 1993/94 ranged between 13% and 20% of total exports each season.
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