Bangladesh's state grains buyer issued a tender on Sunday to import 50,000 tonnes of wheat as part of efforts to boost reserves, a procurement official said. The last date for submission of offers is December 12, with validity until December 21, and the wheat is to be shipped in 40 days after signing the contract.
This is the sixth tender for wheat in the year to June 2012 as the government plans to import 900,000 tonnes of the grain. Another tender to buy a similar quantity of wheat is due to open on December 5, after being deferred by two weeks due to storage constraints. Bangladesh received a lowest offer of $283.07 a tonne in a tender which opened on October 24. Apart from tenders, Bangladesh is buying 100,000 tonnes of wheat from Ukraine at $320 a tonne, including CIF, in its first government-to-government wheat deal with Kiev.
The front-month Chicago Board of Trade wheat futures contract skidded to a 16-month low on Friday amid worries a global economic slowdown will sap demand. However, the Bangladesh government has been struggling with high inflation running a double-digit rate despite bumper crops and good stocks. Private traders import around 2.5 million to 3.0 million tonnes of wheat to meet demand, with domestic production having stagnated at nearly 1 million tonnes. Wheat consumption is rising although rice is the staple food for Bangladesh's 160 million people.