CAIRO, EGYPT — Egypt’s General Authority for Supply Commodities (GASC) directly bought 240,000 tonnes of Russian wheat on Aug. 22, continuing its trend of buying without issuing international tenders, Reuters reported, citing a statement from the supply ministry.

The GASC purchased six 40,000-tonne cargoes on a cost and freight basis with payment by 180-day letters of credit, the news agency said.

The ministry did not say the price or supplier, but traders said they thought the price was around $368 per tonne, an 8% drop from its previous purchase in July.

The GASC has purchased about 1.8 million tonnes of imported wheat since the beginning of the new fiscal year via tenders and direct purchases, Reuters said.

Egypt has seven months of strategic wheat reserves, one month longer than its usual target.

The six cargoes will be shipped over the following periods: Sep. 20 to Oct. 10, Oct. 11 to Oct. 30 and Oct. 21 to Nov. 10, the ministry said.