KARACHI (January 09 2004): Pakistan has short-listed one Australian and three US exporters to negotiate price and quality for the import of 150,000 tonnes of milling wheat, a government official said on Thursday.

"Four bidders have been selected and Passco (Pakistan Agriculture Storage and Services Corp) has been asked to further negotiate with them," the official, who asked not be named, told Reuters from Islamabad.

"It will take at least a week or so to place import orders."

The official said selected bidders have offered price ranging from $214 to $251 per tonne, but the government had not considered offers from a Dubai-based company and a Singaporean firm for Indian wheat at $185 per tonne.

"Karnal bunt fungus in Indian wheat is still an issue and despite low offers we have not considered Indian wheat," he said.

Pakistan banned Indian grain two years ago, saying it was contaminated with the fungus, which India denies.

Traders in the port city of Karachi say imports from India would be most economical because of lower freight costs given the land border between the two countries.

The official said the winning bidders would complete the shipment to Karachi's Port Qasim on a C&F basis by February 15.

The Passco, which issued a purchase tender on December 24, received a total of 14 bids in response to its tender.

The country announced in November it would buy about 500,000 tonnes through international tenders, a move towards Pakistan's first wheat imports in about four years.

The imports, to make up a domestic shortfall and build strategic reserves, would be completed in four to five phases over the next two months.

The imports follow a dry winter spell that damaged the domestic crop. Pakistan's wheat output was about 19.25 million tonnes in the 2002/03 (November/April) crop year, short of a target of 19.70 million tonnes.

Courtesy Business Recorder