The Trading Corporation of Pakistan (TCP) has received multiple bids in its latest international tender to import 100,000 tonnes of white sugar, with the lowest price quoted at $539 per tonne, cost and freight (c&f) included, traders said on Monday.
The tender, issued last week, follows a July 8 government decision to import 500,000 tonnes of sugar to curb rising domestic prices, which analysts say have surged sharply since January. A previous TCP tender for 50,000 tonnes in July reportedly attracted no offers.
According to initial assessments, trading house ED&F Man submitted the lowest bid — $539 c&f for 50,000 tonnes of fine-grade sugar from any origin. Other offers included $580.75 c&f from Dreyfus for 25,000 tonnes of fine-grade sugar from any origin, and $586.00 c&f from Al Khaleej Sugar for 30,000 tonnes of medium-grade sugar from the UAE. Trading house Bare bid $550 c&f for fine-grade and $555 c&f for medium-grade sugar, both sourced from Brazil. No purchase has been confirmed yet, and offers are still under review.
The tender specifies small/fine- and medium-grade sugar from global origins, excluding India and Israel. Shipments must arrive in Pakistan by October 20, with breakbulk deliveries scheduled between September 1–15 for the first 50,000 tonnes and September 10–25 for the remainder. Containerised shipments can be dispatched from September 1–20.
Traders noted that the $539-per-tonne c&f price matched the lowest bid in TCP’s previous 100,000-tonne tender on July 31, which also resulted in no purchase.
Meanwhile, Pakistan’s sugar trade policy has drawn scrutiny. In FY25, the country exported 765,734 tonnes of sugar, earning $411 million at an average price of $537 per tonne. This marked a sharp contrast to FY24, when exports were just 33,101 tonnes, generating $21 million.
The government has pledged tighter monitoring of domestic sugar stocks and placed some mill owners on the Exit Control List in an attempt to stabilise prices. Separately, the Competition Commission of Pakistan (CCP) continues hearings in a cartelisation case involving 79 sugar mills and the Pakistan Sugar Mills Association (PSMA).
