India in Final Talks to Start Wheat Export to Egypt

India is in its final talks to start exporting wheat to Egypt, the world's largest importer.

The Ministry of Commerce announced in a statement over the weekend that the country was in discussion with countries like China and turkey after the Ukrainian crisis had disrupted global supplies. It was also in discussion to sell wheat to Bosnia, Sudan, Nigeria, and Iran, according to "Bloomberg"

The ministry added that India is the world's second-largest wheat producer, while Bangladesh was the country's largest buyer in the 2020-202season.

The Government has given assurance of additional rail capacity to meet any immediate increase in demand for wheat exports, while port authorities have been asked to increase the number of stations and containers for wheat.

The Agricultural and Food Export Development Authority, an arm of the Commerce Ministry, held a stakeholder meeting last week on how to increase shipments.

Indian wheat exports increased more than fourfold to almost six million tons in the 10 months ended 31 January, from 1.38 million tons a year ago.

USDA data shows that wheat production is likely to rise by 111.3 million tons in 2021-2022 from 109.6 million tons the previous year.

Contributed by Israa Farhan