CAIRO, EGYPT — Egypt will import 600,000 tonnes of wheat from Russia in two shipments in May following an international tender by the country’s state grains buyer, the General Authority for Supply Commodities (GASC), Reuters reported.

GASC said the purchase is comprised of 300,000 tonnes for shipment between May 10-20 and 300,000 tonnes for shipment between May 21-31.

Traders said the cargoes were all sold at a FOB price of $275 per tonne, with a C&F price of either $293 or $294, depending on shipping costs. In March, Reuters reported that Russia had no plans to halt its wheat exports but wanted to ensure prices to farmers were high enough to cover costs.

Egypt’s wheat imports in marketing year 2023-24 are forecast to increase by 3%, to 10.8 million tonnes, according to a Global Agricultural Information Network report from the Foreign Agricultural Service of the US Department of Agriculture (USDA). 

Russia is the largest foreign supplier to the Egyptian wheat market, having provided nearly 5 million tonnes during marketing year 2020-21. Egypt, the world’s top wheat importer, has been working to diversify its wheat sources since Russia’s Feb. 24, 2022, invasion of Ukraine threw international markets into turmoil, the USDA said. Ukraine also had been Egypt’s No. 2 wheat supplier.