GASC changes wheat import terms in latest tender: State grain buyer, the General Authority for Supply Commodities (GASC), changed the terms of importing wheat to traders in a Friday tender, traders tell Reuters. The change was meant to calm wary suppliers, some of whom shunned recent state tenders after a surge in costs faced by suppliers if they fail to unload their ships on time. GASC set a cap on demurrage fees, with suppliers now responsible for only the first 12 days of demurrage at a cost of USD 12,000 per day. Suppliers had previously been responsible for any duration and all demurrage fees accrued. GASC also hiked sieving fees to USD 3 per tonne from USD 2 previously. Traders said the new fixed-rate system would better allow them to calculate their costs and therefore reduce risk, though it would likely drive up offer prices. GASC on Friday also reduced protein requirements for major origins to between 11-11.5%.

New terms haven’t gotten GASC lower prices: This comes as GASC bought 180k tonnes of Russian wheat on Friday at an average price of USD 219.45 per tonne, with delivery set at 5-15 March, Reuters Arabic reports. Tom Houghton notes for Agricensus, that the higher price comes despite the new term changes and with wheat futures seeing a 3% drop.