Egypt’s GASC Says Has Almost 7 Months’ Wheat Supply

Egypt’s state wheat buyer said on Wednesday it had purchased almost seven months’ worth of supplies from local and international sources.

Asked how much Egypt had built to date in strategic stocks, Nomani Nomani, vice chairman of the General Authority for Supply Commodities (GASC), said: “Six months and 25 days”.

GASC bought 3.7 million tonnes this year from the local market, up from 2.6 million tonnes last year, Nomani added.

On Thursday, GASC bought 235,000 tonnes of Russian, French and Ukrainian wheat for Nov. 21-30 shipment on a free on board basis. It was GASC’s seventh international wheat tender in a month.

GASC bought more than 1 million tonnes this month alone in a scramble for supplies amid concerns that drought-hit Black Sea nations such as Ukraine and Russia, Egypt’s top supplier, may have little to offer later this year.

Growing worries about dry weather reducing wheat output in Australia, the world’s No. 2 exporter, have only added to concerns among import-dependant nations about shrinking global supplies.

During the 2011/12 fiscal year, GASC’s purchases were dominated by Black Sea origin wheat.

GASC purchased 3.24 million tonnes of Russian wheat, 180,000 tonnes of Romanian wheat, 360,000 tonnes of Ukrainian wheat, 60,000 tonnes of Russian, Ukraine or Kazakh wheat at the seller’s option and 60,000 tonnes of Russian or Kazakh wheat at the seller’s option during the 2011/12 fiscal year.

It also bought 300,000 tonnes of French wheat and 300,000 tonnes of Argentine wheat as well as 530,000 tonnes of U.S. soft red winter wheat and 60,000 tonnes of Canadian wheat.

Reuters