India might cut or abolish wheat import tax: Food Secretary Sanjeev Chopra

By Mayank Bhardwaj

NEW DELHI (Reuters) -India is considering cutting or abolishing import taxes on wheat, Food Secretary Sanjeev Chopra said on Friday, as the world's second-biggest producer struggles to contain prices.

India in June imposed a limit on the amount of wheat stocks traders can hold, for the first time in 15 years, to bring down prices.

"We have options like lowering or abolishing the wheat import duty and tweaking the stock holding limits to control prices," Chopra, the ministry's top civil servant, said. "The options are under consideration."

Chopra said there was no plan to import wheat from Russia or engage in a government-to-government deal.

Wheat prices in New Delhi have jumped 12% in the past four months to 25,174 rupees ($303.85) a metric ton, the highest in nearly six months, as traders say production was hit by erratic weather.

According to the government, wheat output rose to a record 112.74 million metric tons in 2023, up from 107.7 million metric tons a year earlier. India consumes around 108 million metric tons of wheat annually.

But a leading trade body told Reuters in June that India's wheat harvest in 2023 was at least 10% lower than the government's estimate.

($1 = 82.8490 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Mayank Bhardwaj; writing by Rajendra Jadhav; editing by Nick Macfie)