India Restricts Wheat Flour Exports to Bring Down Record Prices

New Delhi banned wheat exports in mid-May as a scorching heatwave curtailed output and domestic prices hit a record high.

Reuters

New Delhi banned wheat exports in mid-May as a scorching heatwave curtailed output and domestic prices hit a record high.

india restricts wheat flour exports to bring down record prices

Workers fill sacks with wheat at the market yard of the Agriculture Product Marketing Committee (APMC). Photo: Reuters

Mumbai: India's cabinet on August 25 approved a policy to restrict wheat flour exports to calm prices in the local market, the government said in a statement.

New Delhi banned wheat exports in mid-May as a scorching heatwave curtailed output and domestic prices hit a record high. In July India asked traders to secure permission before exporting wheat flour.

Also Read: India Bans Wheat Exports With Immediate Effect in a Bid to Control Domestic Prices

The ban on wheat exports boosted demand for Indian wheat flour and the country's flour exports jumped 200% during April-July 2022 from a year ago and lifted prices in the local market, the government said.

"There was a policy not to prohibit or put any restrictions on the export of wheat flour. Therefore, a partial modification of the policy was required....to ensure food security and put a check on mounting prices," it said.

Local wheat prices jumped to a record Rs 24,500 ($306.71) per tonne this week.

That was up nearly 20% from recent lows that followed the government's surprise ban on exports on May 14, ending hopes India could fill the market gap left by a plunge in exports from the Black Sea region following Russia's Feb. 24 invasion of Ukraine.

(Reuters)

This article went live on August twenty-sixth, two thousand twenty two, at eighteen minutes past twelve at noon.

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