Staff Report
ISLAMABAD: Increasing wheat imports along with those of tea, palm oil, spices and sugar caused a whopping jump of 56 per cent in the country’s food import bill in the first quarter of 2020-21. It amounted to $1.71 billion in the three-month period. In 2019-20, the food import bill plunged 4.31pc to $5.42bn.
In September alone, the food import bill stood at $731 million versus $452m in August and $400m in September 2019, thus signaling the revival in food imports despite the government’s efforts to curb foreign buying through various measures.
To control the flour price, wheat imports from Ukraine began in the last week of August with 39,348 tonnes of the commodity costing $9.5m at the price of $242 per tonne.
The per-tonne rate further dropped to $235 in September as the import quantity swelled to 392,246 tonnes valuing $92m. The wheat import bill in the first quarter of 2020-21 stood at $102m as 431,594 tonnes arrived in the country through the private sector.
After pushing up the prices of flour type No. 2.5 to Rs59 per kg and fine/super fine to Rs71 per kg — from Rs43 and Rs46 per kg, respectively, prevailing in March — the millers in Sindh reduced the rate on Oct 22 by Rs7 to Rs52 per kg for No. 2.5 and Rs64 per kg for fine/super fine. The reduction was on account of the falling price of imported and locally produced wheat.
The federal government had not taken any serious notice of the massive price increase between March and October 22. Instead, it opened wheat imports to lower flour prices.
Wheat from Ukraine now costs Rs5,070 per 100 kg, including transportation charges from the port, as opposed to Rs5,500, the rate that prevailed in the first week of October. The price of locally produced wheat is Rs5,200 per 100 kg as opposed to Rs5,700 in the open market.
Including the one ship loaded with Russian wheat, private importers expect the arrival of 300,000 tonnes in October. Trading Corporation of Pakistan (TCP) has also imported 180,000 tonnes during the current month. The government had fixed the import target of 1.5m tonnes each for TCP and the private sector.
Imports of pulses jumped to 121,622 tonnes in September valuing $55m against 71,326 tonnes costing $35m in the preceding month and 63,745 tonnes a year ago with the import bill of $30m.
Imports of pulses in the first quarter of 2020-21 rose 8.5pc in quantity to 274,299 tonnes and 14pc in value to $135m on an annual basis. The per-tonne price of the commodity stood higher at $493 in July-Sept as opposed to $469 a year ago.
Despite the rupee’s recovery against the dollar by Rs5 between July and Oct 22, the prices of different pulses rose by Rs20-40 per kg.
Karachi Wholesale Grocers Association (KWGA) Patron-in-Chief Anis Majeed said traders had brought higher quantities of yellow peas from Russia and Canada. Imports of daal masoor from Australia and Canada also remained up. He said higher prices of pulses in the international market offset the falling import costs owing to the rising rupee strength against the greenback.
Anticipating higher consumption in winter, importers procured tea in larger quantities. Its import showed a jump of 51pc in quantity to 65,495 tonnes and 39pc in value to $142m during the first quarter 2020-21 on a year-on-year basis. The per-tonne price in the three-month period fell to $2,167 from $2,362 a year ago. However, tea’s retail price remained unchanged. A tea importer said legal imports have improved amid suspension in tea arrival under the guise of Afghan Transit Trade (ATT).
