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Tea stuck at port, shortage looms

I don't think so. I read a statement by anonymous oil companies official saying there's only stock for 2 weeks and LC aren't being issued even for petrolium. Back on Sunday, I spent 45 mins in line for petrol.

Haven't left the house since then but I think it was due to people wanting to get their tanks filled before the 35rs/litre price hike next day. That's common. smaller petrol pumps shut down to get a better margin the next day. I got it at the main petrol station in the area, and they were capping at 1000PKR i.e. 4 litre for motorcycle.


Comedy that's being played out here right now, mind you.

Don't wait for tomorrow. Go to your nearest store and stock up on 3 months of staples and food items and toothpaste and stuff. Also fill up your tank and bring your car back home and swich it off. Assume that the next 2 months you will sit at home.
 
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Tea stuck at port, shortage looms​

Pakistanis said to sip away around 250m kilograms of imported tea annually

Correspondent
February 02, 2023


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KARACHI: Despite the State Bank of Pakistan's (SBP) permission to clear the containers at the port of raw materials and essential goods, thousands of containers remain stranded, including hundreds of containers of tea.

This situation has given rise to fears of shortage akin to that of raw materials, pulses and other food items, with tea expected to added to the list.

In this regard, the former chairman of the Pakistan Tea Association Muhammad Shoaib Paracha said that there were concrete fears of a severe shortage and an increase in prices in the coming days.

“The main reason for the expected tea shortage is the 250 tea containers at the ports till now,” said Paracha who is also member of the FPCCI Executive Committee.

The State Bank allowed the import of containers in Chapters 84, 85 and 87, but it is not clear whether tea leaf is included in it, he continued.

Paracha said that after protests by traders, the State Bank allowed the release of containers on late payment after 180 days, but tea leaf sellers are not allowing late payment.

Due to this, it is feared that sellers would not take orders in future.

This has made the situation more complicated.

He said that due to the non-availability of dollars in commercial banks, demurrage and container fares of millions of rupees have been imposed on importers so far.

"One of the main reasons for the shortage is the absence of a longterm policy by the government," he maintained.
Paracha added that tea is a basic ingredient that every common man consumes.

The demand for tea is around 250 million kilograms annually.

The depreciation of the rupee last week has caused an average difference of Rs110 in the per kg price of tea.
He said that with no clear policy for new imports, the supply chain can be severely affected.




Damn I do not get any tea when I fly Mig into your airspace :enjoy:
 
Don't wait for tomorrow. Go to your nearest store and stock up on 3 months of staples and food items and toothpaste and stuff. Also fill up your tank and bring your car back home and swich it off. Assume that the next 2 months you will sit at home.
I just bought two month's worth rations yesterday. Have my tanks full. Working from home.
Some people with the wrong idea about religion think this is hoarding. It's not.
Nothing short of mass protests (not sissy ones like last year) can change anything. So, it's foolish to sit idle and pray all goes well and divine help will reach us. Even when an airplane loses cabin pressure, you are instructed to wear your oxygen mask first no matter if a beloved is sitting next to you. You can only help others if your own head is above the water.

Damn I do not get any tea when I fly Mig into your airspace :enjoy:
Yeah, we don't have tea in the flight simulator. Come by in the real world and you'll see our legendary hospitality.
 

KARACHI: Ahead of Ramazan the price of black tea (loose) has swelled to Rs1,600 per kg from Rs1,100 in the last 15 days as around 250 containers still stuck at the port that arrived from late December 2022 to early January.

After Jan 21, banks had filed financial instruments thus allowing only those importers to pay duties who received 180 days defer payment telex from their suppliers. But the containers of those who failed to get this facility from their suppliers are still stranded at the port.

A retailer said a leading brand has raised the price of 170-gram Danedar and Elaichi packs to Rs320 and Rs350 from Rs290. The 900 and 420-gram packs now cost Rs1,480 and Rs720 as against Rs1,350 and Rs550. Other packers are set to follow suit.

Zeeshan Maqsood, Convener Standing Committee of the Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI) on Tea, said that imports are currently under crisis which may lead to huge shortages in March.

He said banks say they have instructions from the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) to release documents on 180-day defer contracts or 180-day letters of credit (LCs).

He added that the situation is getting worse because if anyone gets these containers released on 180-day defer payment then how he would calculate the cost of imported tea as nobody knows what would be the dollar rate after six months on the interbank market?

Mr Zeeshan, who is also an executive member of the Pakistan Tea Association (PTA), said the banks are not opening LCs saying they do not have any instructions from the SBP for new contracts.

He feared that tea price may hit Rs2,500 per kg in Ramazan in case stuck-up consignments were not released.

As a result, the welfare associations may not be able to distribute tea in ration bags due to shortage and high cost, he added.

Mr Zeeshan suggested that Pakistan should sign a Prefrential Trade Agreement (PTA) with Kenya. “We import 90 per cent of Kenyan tea from a weekly auction in Mombasa where all African Origin teas are sold.”

Kenya is the gateway to Africa connecting seven landlocked countries. Pakistan imports teas worth around $500m annually from Kenya and exports only $250m of different items.

“If PTA is signed with Kenya then Pakistan exports will increase to over $2.5bn annually through shipments of items like rice, surgical goods, textiles, tractors, electronics, IT, cement and many other items which Kenya imports from other countries.

PTA would also help in bringing down tea prices and mutual dialogue can be started between the two countries to boost trade in other currencies for mutual interest, he hoped.

The country’s official tea imports in IHFH23 stood at 128,057 tonnes ($318m) versus 129,693 tonnes ($300m) in the same period last year. The average per tonne price in IHFY23 stood at $2,489 as compared to $2,317, official data showed.

@INDIAPOSITIVE @pikkuboss @indushek @StraightEdge @my2cents @Skull and Bones @kaykay @Indos @Suriya @surmabhopali @Sam6536 @hembo @VkdIndian @RandyB @nahtanbob @walterbibikow @kaykay
 
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KARACHI: Ahead of Ramazan the price of black tea (loose) has swelled to Rs1,600 per kg from Rs1,100 in the last 15 days as around 250 containers still stuck at the port that arrived from late December 2022 to early January.

After Jan 21, banks had filed financial instruments thus allowing only those importers to pay duties who received 180 days defer payment telex from their suppliers. But the containers of those who failed to get this facility from their suppliers are still stranded at the port.

A retailer said a leading brand has raised the price of 170-gram Danedar and Elaichi packs to Rs320 and Rs350 from Rs290. The 900 and 420-gram packs now cost Rs1,480 and Rs720 as against Rs1,350 and Rs550. Other packers are set to follow suit.

Zeeshan Maqsood, Convener Standing Committee of the Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI) on Tea, said that imports are currently under crisis which may lead to huge shortages in March.

He said banks say they have instructions from the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) to release documents on 180-day defer contracts or 180-day letters of credit (LCs).

He added that the situation is getting worse because if anyone gets these containers released on 180-day defer payment then how he would calculate the cost of imported tea as nobody knows what would be the dollar rate after six months on the interbank market?

Mr Zeeshan, who is also an executive member of the Pakistan Tea Association (PTA), said the banks are not opening LCs saying they do not have any instructions from the SBP for new contracts.

He feared that tea price may hit Rs2,500 per kg in Ramazan in case stuck-up consignments were not released.

As a result, the welfare associations may not be able to distribute tea in ration bags due to shortage and high cost, he added.

Mr Zeeshan suggested that Pakistan should sign a Prefrential Trade Agreement (PTA) with Kenya. “We import 90 per cent of Kenyan tea from a weekly auction in Mombasa where all African Origin teas are sold.”

Kenya is the gateway to Africa connecting seven landlocked countries. Pakistan imports teas worth around $500m annually from Kenya and exports only $250m of different items.

“If PTA is signed with Kenya then Pakistan exports will increase to over $2.5bn annually through shipments of items like rice, surgical goods, textiles, tractors, electronics, IT, cement and many other items which Kenya imports from other countries.

PTA would also help in bringing down tea prices and mutual dialogue can be started between the two countries to boost trade in other currencies for mutual interest, he hoped.

The country’s official tea imports in IHFH23 stood at 128,057 tonnes ($318m) versus 129,693 tonnes ($300m) in the same period last year. The average per tonne price in IHFY23 stood at $2,489 as compared to $2,317, official data showed.

@INDIAPOSITIVE @pikkuboss @indushek @StraightEdge @my2cents @Skull and Bones @kaykay @Indos @Suriya @surmabhopali @Sam6536 @hembo @VkdIndian @RandyB @nahtanbob @walterbibikow @kaykay
Look at this loser.
On a Pakistani issue he has tagged only all other Bakhtoras so these creatures can all have a Beef festival. That's called Pakistan Obsession in its element.
 
Tea is not different than cigarettes. It’s waste of money and time pass habit. People are addicted to Tea. It should be declared Haram and banned for import.
 
Look at this loser.
On a Pakistani issue he has tagged only all other Bakhtoras so these creatures can all have a Beef festival. That's called Pakistan Obsession in its element.
Talk to me when you get the cash to have chai.

Tea is not different than cigarettes. It’s waste of money and time pass habit. People are addicted to Tea. It should be declared Haram and banned for import.
Big brain time.
 
Doesn’t Pakistan produce its own tea, atleast to a smaller degree?
 
There should be a crusade against this foreign weed threatening natural balance and harmony.

Tea and her relationship with climate change can only be appreciated by levying a carbon tax and carbon displacement surchage.
 
Yes being an Indian you will digress in all directions to boast your tiny ego. Remind me, like Bakhtoras, has any Pakistani National decided to swing from the tree over food shortages.
Also remember this.


and what is happening now? US is lining up outside his office to work together. Real Politik matters. not everything is about hate and violence like in Pakistan.




 

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