mmtc tenders

UPDATE 1-India's MMTC tenders to import 35,000 T raw sugar

MUMBAI, Feb 12 (Reuters) - India's MMTC Ltd (MMTC.BO: Quote, Profile, Research) plans to import 35,000 of raw sugar, its second such move in the crop year that started in October and one that could tighten global supplies and lift prices.

The state-run commodity trader issued a tender on Thursday to import the raw sugar in February-March, the company said on its website. The last date to submit bids is Feb. 17, it said.

MMTC earlier floated a tender on Jan. 23 seeking to buy 22,000 tonnes of raw sugar by February.

India is expected to import about 4.5 million tonnes of raw sugar in the next 12 months, a senior official at producer Simbhaoli Sugars Ltd (SIMB.BO: Quote, Profile, Research) said earlier this week. See [ID:nBMA002349].

An analyst and a trade body head said it was unclear whether shipments from the latest tender would land before many of the mills close down operations by the end of March, when cane availability starts to dwindle.

"The crucial thing is that by the time quantity lands at the Indian shores most mills in Maharashtra may end crushing," Ashwini Bansod, a senior analyst at MF Global Commodities India Ltd, said.

If so, there would be a marginal impact on local prices, he said.

Ashokkumar U. Jain, a trader and president of the Bombay Sugar Merchants' Association, said if shipments were delayed, the imported supplies would get carried over to the next crushing season starting in October.

PDATE 1-India's MMTC tenders to import 35,000 T raw

"Only few mills can refine raw sugar throughout the year. The rest are likely to end crushing by March-end," Jain said.

India, which exported a record 4.9 million tonnes in 2007/08, expects sugar output to fall by a third to 18 million tonnes in the current crop year to September, and some officials say it may drop to 16 million tonnes, from 26.5 million tonnes last year.

To prevent prices from rising on account of lower output, the government earlier this month eased sugar import rules, allowing mills to buy raws at zero duty for domestic sale with a condition to export a similar quantity of refined sugar within 24 months.

(Reporting by Rajendra Jadhav and Ruchira Singh; Editing by John Mair and Mark Williams)