Sugar exports to be halted if local retail price crosses Rs155/kg

The federal government has fixed Rs155 per kg as the national average retail sugar price that would trigger a halt to exports, according to Profit by Pakistan Today. The trigger sits Rs9.95 above the Rs145.05 per kg average the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics recorded on September 24. The Cabinet Committee for the Export of Surplus Sugar settled the figure at a September 29 meeting held under Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar.

Minutes from the Ministry of National Food Security, issued on September 30, state that exports would be halted only if the national average tops Rs155 per kg. Based on monthly consumption of about 575 million kg, a Rs9.95 per kg rise would add roughly Rs5.72 billion to consumer spending each month. Rounding the gap to Rs10 per kg raises that estimate to Rs5.75 billion.

Industry insiders quoted in the report contend that retailers already take advantage of lax checks by local administrations, and that higher caps help officials avoid criticism over their failure to control retail rates. Chaudhry Zaka Ashraf, outgoing chairman of the Pakistan Sugar Mills Association, rejected Rs155 as too low and pegged industry and farmer costs near Rs160 per kg.