Egypt's state grain buyer, the General Authority for Supply Commodities (GASC), says it's still negotiating a contract for the direct import of wheat outside of the regular tender process.
"You saw the last tender the prices were US$10 above market and that will not work," Mamdouh Abdel Fattah, GASC's vice chairman, told Reuters.
Egypt, the world's largest wheat importer, cancelled a wheat purchase tender on Friday after receiving only four offers that were well above market prices.
GASC last week had said it was negotiating a three million-tonne direct contract but did not give further details.
Abdel Fattah made that statement after global suppliers shunned a wheat import tender over confusion concerning regulations governing the permitted levels of ergot fungus in imported wheat.
Abdel Fattah on Sunday made his comments after Egypt's supply and agriculture ministers sought to reassure the global market in a press conference that Egypt would continue to accept wheat shipments with ergot fungus levels up to 0.05 percent.
Reuters
