ISLAMABAD, Aug 12: The Trading Corporation of Pakistan (TCP) has bought an additional 418,000 metric tons of wheat at $379.71 a ton, cost and freight included, in a tender opened last week, an official said on Tuesday.

The TCP had originally sought 250,000 tons in the tender issued on July 30 and opened on August 6, and initially bought 100,000 tons of wheat from

Exim Grain Trade, which quoted the lowest price of $379.71 a ton.

The corporation had offered other bidders the opportunity to match the price, and a TCP official said more deals had been struck with other suppliers.

“We have bought a total of 518,000 tons of wheat in the July 30 tender at the same price,” said the TCP official who declined to be identified. He had no further details.

Another agency official said the other suppliers were Broda Agro, which sold 25,000 tons, Cargill, with 45,000 tons, W.J. Grain, 33,000 tons, AWB, 40,000 tons, Agrocorp, 80,000 tons, Ameropa, 45,000 tons, Glencore, 100,000 tons and Louis Dryfus, which sold 50,000 tons.

European traders said earlier that the TCP purchased a total of 465,000 tons of wheat in the same tender.

An industry source had said earlier a total of 11 offers were made ranging between $379.71 and $403.00, for shipment to Karachi from any origin.

Separately, eight offers were submitted for shipment to Gwadar Port against the same tender.—Reuters