Turkey to import 400,000 tons of sugar

A presidential decree published in the Official Gazette has paved the way for the import of 400,000 tons of sugar at a time when sugar price in the domestic market is rising.

The decree stipulates that no customs duties will be levied on the 400,000 tons of sugar to be imported and that import licenses, which will be granted under the new decision, will be valid until Oct. 15, 2022.

The import quotas will be also allocated to companies that use sugar in their products.

The price of sugar is around $560 tons per ton, but in Turkey, its price has climbed to $1,200 per ton, officials said, adding that speculative moves and strong demand play role in the spike in prices.

Officials from the Agriculture and Forestry Ministry said companies that use sugar in their products would be allocated import quotas in order to stabilize the market and prevent speculation.

They noted that some 200,000 tons of sugar are consumed per month in Turkey, while the annual consumption is around 2.45 million tons.

Normally, between January and May, 1.45 million tons of sugar are sold in the local market, but sales exceeded 2 million tons this year, officials said.

"The main reason behind the recent increase in sugar price is demand. Both producers and consumers are stockpiling sugar as they fear that prices will go up further. Producers presently have 400,000 tons of sugar, but everyone wants to buy sugar from [the state-owned] TürkŞeker because its price is two times cheaper than the market price," they said.

The price of sugar should have been between 14,000 liras and 15,000 liras per ton, but it is currently at 20,000 liras, according to Hüseyin Akay, the head of the Kayseri Sugar Beet Growers' Cooperative.

"The cost of...