Egypt, one of the world’s largest wheat importers, is looking for alternatives to its Black Sea grain exports disrupted by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Egypt’s two main wheat exporters.
“We have agreed to buy half a million tonnes from India,” Mr Moselhy said on the sidelines of a press conference.
New Delhi on Saturday announced a ban on wheat exports amid a heatwave that has reduced domestic production and pushed up domestic prices.
However, Moselhy told a news conference that India’s ban would not apply to the deal with Egypt.
He also said the Egyptian cabinet had agreed that the government buyer, the General Commodity Procurement Authority, could skip its tender process and buy wheat directly from the state or authorized business.
Egypt is also in talks with Kazakhstan, France and Argentina, he added.
Egypt has four months of strategic oil reserves and six months of vegetable oil, the country’s prime minister said earlier in the day.
Officials say that after supplying the current local harvest, Egypt’s grain reserves will be sufficient until the end of the year.
