Pakistan authorizes 200,000-tonne sugar export quota

The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has directed banks to process export cases for a 200,000-metric-tonne sugar quota for eligible mills. This follows a decision by the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) to permit exports, with operational modalities finalized by the Ministry of National Food Security and Research and the Pakistan Sugar Mills Association (PSMA).

Under these instructions, banks must ensure that export requests and financial instruments correspond to the specific mill-wise quotas allocated by the PSMA. The SBP has mandated that exports be conducted only against advance payments or sight letters of credit, and all shipments must be transported via sea routes.

In a separate development regarding surplus stocks, a tender issued by the Trading Corporation of Pakistan (TCP) for 107,739 metric tonnes of imported white refined sugar failed to attract any bids. The tender concluded on September 30 without offers because the TCP’s reserve price of approximately $660 per tonne was significantly higher than the prevailing international market rates, which were trading between $505 and $515 per tonne.