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HAMBURG, March 2 (Reuters) – Iranian state agency the Government Trading Corporation (GTC) is believed to have purchased Russian-origin milling wheat in a tender which closed on Wednesday, European traders said on Thursday.
The volume involved was unclear but some traders said a large purchase of several hundred thousand tonnes was suspected.
A tender for a nominal 60,000 tonnes from the GTC had sought shipment in April and May.
“The market was surprised at the tender as there is talk about large numbers of ships still waiting to unload grain in Iran because of payment delays,” one trader said.
Dozens of merchant ships with grains and sugar were stuck in December outside Iranian ports after weeks of delays as payment snags disrupted the flow of goods into the country, according to trade sources and shipping data.
Food is exempt from the West’s sanctions on Iran over its nuclear programme, but the sanctions have affected the country’s financial system, creating complex and erratic payment arrangements with international companies.
“Russian wheat is the cheapest in the international market currently,” another trader said. “It is logical that Russia would supply. There is belief that the purchase this week was large but details are still lacking.”
(Reporting by Michael Hogan; Editing by Richard Chang)
((michael.j.hogan@thomsonreuters.com; +49 172 671 36 54; Reuters Messaging: michael.hogan.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))
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