India to export wheat for friendly importers, countries in need
As the IMF urged India to lift the wheat ban, the latter decides to allow wheat exports to friendly countries.
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Indian workers carrying wheat (Reuters)
On Wednesday, India announced that it will allow wheat exports to friendly countries and to those in need. However, the Indian Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal also announced that the ban remained in place for private suppliers.
If the ban is to be lifted on wheat exports for private suppliers, said the minister, the only beneficiaries would be the black market and speculators. It will not help support vulnerable countries.
"India wheat exports are less than 1% of world trade and our export regulation should not affect global markets. We continue to allow exports to vulnerable countries and neighbors," the minister said on Twitter, summing up his speech at the World Economic Forum annual summit in Davos.
On May 4th, the Indian authorities expressed their concern regarding the early summer which resulted in a 5.7% decrease, totaling 105 million tons, in their wheat production forecast. Their revised forecast for 2021-2022 played a major role in the final decision to ban exports of wheat protecting their nation’s food security and prices.
Wheat is the second most-produced grain in the world after corn; now the whole world might face a wheat supply shortage due to the #Ukrainian crisis and the sanctions imposed on #Russia.#Ukraine #RussiaUkraine pic.twitter.com/aNkRuR4cj7
— Al Mayadeen English (@MayadeenEnglish) March 2, 2022
On May 14, India imposed a ban on wheat exports as a result of the global wheat price hike. Consequently, the price of wheat in Europe soared to a record $455 a ton.
On Tuesday, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Chief Kristalina Georgieva pressed India to reconsider the ban.
"I would beg India to reconsider [the wheat ban] as soon as possible because the more countries step into export restrictions, the more others will be tempted to do so, and we will end up as a global community less equipped to deal with this [food] crisis," the IMF chief said in an interview to the NDTV broadcaster at the WEF.
Read more: Indian farmers see bleak harvest after wheat export ban
If exported to countries struggling economically such as Lebanon and Egypt, Indian wheat can play a huge role on the global stage. Moreover, with the increasing sanctions on Russia, G7 countries have continuously urged India to reconsider its decision to ban wheat exports since their very sanctions have caused disruptions in grain exports.
