Egypt's wheat to suffice until April

Egypt's latest purchases of international wheat will ensure the country's needs are met until the first week of April 2015, Minister of Supply Khaled Hanafi announced on Friday.

Egypt has signed contracts for 120,000 tonnes of Russian wheat and 60,000 tonnes of French wheat, at an average price of $262.92 per tonne, to be delivered next month after the 13th global tender for wheat in this year's budget, said Hanafi.

Egypt imported 5.46 million tonnes of wheat to supplement the 3.7 million tonnes of locally procured wheat in the last fiscal year, which ended on 30 June.

The government, which runs a bread subsidy programme for some 69 million Egyptians, is the world's number one importer of wheat.