How tensions in Ukraine could rile Egypt
A disruption in the wheat market would cause serious harm to the biggest Arab country
THE BIGGEST buyer of wheat in the world is Egypt, which will import over 13m tonnes of the grain this year. Odd, then, that the way it makes these purchases is so archaic. Every few weeks it summons traders to a ramshackle building in Cairo. Agents from the big firms that source, store and ship foodstuffs are told to bring an envelope with their best price inside. These are then opened and the prices revealed to all. That’s when the haggling begins. The tenders drag on for hours, but eventually Egypt announces a purchase so big that global wheat prices move in response.
This article appeared in the Middle East & Africa section of the print edition under the headline “Grains of wrath”
From the February 5th 2022 edition
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