ECC approves international tenders to export 108,000 MT of surplus TCP sugar

The Economic Coordination Committee of the Cabinet has cleared a plan to seek overseas bids for shipping 108,000 metric tons of excess sugar, Profit by Pakistan Today reported. Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb chaired the Wednesday session, which reviewed a request from the National Food Security and Research ministry. The sugar sits with the Trading Corporation of Pakistan and is the leftover from 300,000 tonnes imported last year on the Steering Committee on Sugar's advice. The tender process will follow PPRA Rules 2004.

Commerce Secretary Jawad Paul told a National Assembly Standing Committee on August 12, 2026 that no proposal to allow sugar exports was under consideration at that point. The Ministry of Commerce was reportedly wary of exporting surplus sugar, pointing to last year's exports, which were later reimported. Committee member Tahira Aurangzeb had pressed for a clear answer on the Pakistan Sugar Mills Association's export demand.

The PSMA puts sugar stocks at 3.171 million tonnes as of July 31, 2026, and projects a surplus of 1.197 million tonnes when the 2026-27 season opens. It has asked for immediate export approval of 633,000 tonnes, while a further 564,000 tonnes would be kept as a one-month strategic reserve.