ISLAMABAD: The federal government is likely to import 1.4 million tonnes of wheat at an estimated price of Rs1,929 per 40 kilogrammes (kg) to meet its target of 27.03 million tonnes of wheat production.
According to sources the Ministry of National Food Security and Research has estimated that it will have to import wheat at Rs1,929 per 40kg, whereas local wheat prices stand in the range of Rs1,450 to 1,550 in Sindh and Rs1,460 to 1,600 in Punjab.
Earlier on June 22, the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) had allowed the private sector to import wheat and decided to monitor the situation on a monthly basis. The government was to import wheat itself in case of lack of imports from the private sector.
The ECC has also directed the Ministry of National Food Security and Research to assess the financial implications of importing wheat via the private sector compared to the public sector.
As of June 22, price of hard red winter wheat from USA and Canada stands at $212 per tonne whereas the price of wheat from Black Sea countries stands at $198 per tonne.
The import parity price of hard red winter and wheat from the Black Sea region are estimated at Rs.1,929 per 40kg and Rs1,694 per 40kg respectively.
According to sources, currently the wheat production in the country stands at 25 million tonnes with a shortfall of 1.4 million tonnes. Out of the 25 million tonnes produced, 19 million tonnes have been produced in Punjab, 3.8 million tonnes in Sindh, 1.2 million tonnes in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and 0.98 million tonnes in Balochistan.
