November 6, 2007

Pakistan issues tender for 300,000 tonnes of wheat
 

State-run Trading Corp. of Pakistan issued a tender Tuesday to import 300,000 tonnes of milling wheat for shipment between December-January, with bids to be submitted Nov. 14, a company official said.

The official said suppliers have to offer a minimum quantity of 50,000 tonnes on a cost-and-freight basis at Karachi's Port Qasim for delivery 45 days after acceptance.

"TCP has also issued another import tender of 20,000 tonnes which is India specific," the official said.

"The second tender will also be finalised on Nov. 14 and the wheat will be allowed to be imported through land routes," he said.

Pakistan unveiled its import plans in September, saying it would import 1 million tonnes of wheat as a reserve buffer stock to check soaring domestic flour prices.

The country has around 1 million tonnes in its strategic wheat reserve, while it has harvested 23.5 million tonnes of wheat from current 2006-07 crop. Annual domestic demand is 21 million tonnes.

The grain trading agency has been regularly buying wheat on the international market after a government estimate that Pakistan would need at least half a million tonnes of imports in 2007-2008 to meet domestic demand.

It has so far bought 50,000 tonnes of wheat from worldwide sources through a previous tender.