PM defers decision to export sugar on contradictory claims

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has deferred a decision on allowing the export of sugar due to contradictory claims of surplus stocks, which according to the government reported only 114,000 metric tonnes compared to the sugar industry’s estimates of 1.5 million tonnes. The Pakistan Sugar Mills Association (PSMA)’s claim about surplus sugar stocks was over 1200% higher than the estimates of the Ministry of National Food Security and Research. The difference in the numbers is due to variation in monthly consumption and the government’s insistence on keeping strategic reserves. PM Sharif chaired a meeting last week to review the possibility of sugar export, according to officials who attended the meeting. However, it emerged during the meeting that there were no consensus numbers available regarding surplus stock, they added. The premier asked government officials to reconcile their figures before he chairs another meeting on the subject.