Saudi Arabia has bought 330,000 tons of wheat from US, Canada, Australia and the European Union at an average price of $320.44 (SR1,200) per ton, the Grain Silos & Flour Mills Organization (GSFMO) said in a statement Sunday. The wheat will be for May and June shipments to the Jeddah Islamic Port and King Abdul Aziz seaport in Dammam, the statement issued by Walid Bin Abdul Karim Al-Khuraiji, Director General of the GSFMO, said. The imported wheat is due to arrive on board three ships each to the two seaports, the statement said. “The average price for the quantities (six vessels)... at $320.44 per ton,” it added. Saudi wheat imports last year were about 1.9 million tons and may increase slightly this year. Plans are also under way to increase storage capacity to 3.2 million tons to cover an annual average wheat consumption of 2.9 million tons. Only two percent of Saudi Arabia's wheat imports in the period from 2008 to 2011 came from Russia while 40 percent was imported from Canada in the same period. Saudi Arabia plans to totally depend on wheat imports by the year 2016 to save water.
