October 6, 2002	Sunday	Rajab 28, 1423

ISLAMABAD, Oct 5: The wheat disposal committee on Saturday restrained Passco from wheat export till the arrival of new wheat crops, said an official.

The decision to this effect was taken in a meeting, which was presided over by Minister for Privatization Altaf Saleem and attended among others by senior officials from the ministries of commerce, agriculture, food and livestock and finance.

The committee, however, decided that the Punjab Food Department would export the surplus 1 million tons of wheat, while the Sindh Food Department 0.1 million tons surplus wheat.

It allowed food departments of Sindh and Punjab to carry out export of wheat in future besides tendering and exporting through Trading Corporation of Pakistan, added the official.

The committee also directed that every effort should be made to increase the Pakistani wheat export prices in view of global drought condition in major wheat exporting countries—America, Canada, Australia.

The current wheat export price at CBOT (Chicago board of Trade) stands at US dollar 145 fob. Pakistan has been able to export 1.4 million tons wheat since June 2001 to various destination including Afghanistan, UAE, Kenya, Iraq, Malaysia and Egypt. However, the Pakistani wheat fetched export price of an average US dollar 108 fob Karachi, said the official.

According to the official, the understanding to this effect has already been reached in the preliminary meetings held recently in the ministry of commerce; food and agriculture and livestock following the rise in the wheat export resulting in price hike of the same.