Egypt’s new wheat import system is taking the spotlight in a Bloomberg feature this week about the difficulties faced by traders attempting to access information on Egypt’s state-issued wheat tenders. Traders argue the lack of information is making it more challenging to gauge the volumes, prices, and origins of the wheat competitors are attempting to sell to Egypt, one of the world's biggest wheat importers. Up until late last year, valuable insights were drawn regarding trade flows, particularly from the Black Sea and European regions.

What happened? The General Authority for Supply Commodities (GASC) managed wheat imports until late last year. During tenders, GASC published final results, and traders gathered and shared details about offers and purchases, including the grain’s origin, price, the selling company, and cargo sizes. In early December, GASC said the Mostakbal Misr Agency for Sustainable Development would assume responsibility for this role. Since then, Mostakbal Misr has started securing wheat largely through direct purchases, and the company has yet to conduct a tender.

The impact: The “info was very useful as an insight into the export market and the competitiveness of various origins,” CRM AgriCommodities consultant Mike Verdin tells Bloomberg, “[the data] offered a guide, both through the list of offers as well as the cargoes actually purchased. The loss of this has made the market less transparent … with info on other tenders less complete and less frequent.”

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