Shanghai Daily: Business - shanghaidaily.com
INDIA, the world's second-biggest wheat consumer, scrapped a tender to buy 350,000 tons of the grain after balking at higher prices amid expectations domestic production will be the highest in seven years. "Prices are too high," India's Commerce Secretary G.K. Pillai said in a phone interview with Bloomberg News in New Delhi yesterday. "We will take a decision on importing more wheat after the next wheat crop." The country should meet an output target of 75.5 million tons, the most since 2000, the farm ministry said on December 18. India, importing wheat for a second year to boost state reserves, may wait a few months before issuing a new tender as it expects prices to fall. Wheat rose above US$10 a bushel in Chicago for the first time on December 17 after concerns dry weather in Argentina, the world's fourth-biggest exporter, will shrink global supplies. "We may not import wheat as of now," Pillai said. Government-owned State Trading Corp on
Shanghai Daily: Business - shanghaidaily.com
THE total profit of China's township enterprises is expected to rise 14 percent year on year to 1.69 trillion yuan (US$230 billion) in 2007, according to figures released by the Ministry of Agriculture yesterday. Aggregate turnover would reach 28 trillion yuan, up 13.5 percent, the ministry said. Township enterprises are involved in many businesses, such as farm produce processing, construction and catering, among others.