Ships carrying Russian wheat dock at Karachi port

Two cargo ships carrying 300,000 tonnes of wheat from Russia, the first consignment, docked at Port Qasim on Monday as the government struggles to bridge the demand and supply gap in the country.

According to the ministry of food security, the remaining 400,000 tonnes of the 700,000 tonnes of Russian wheat will arrive at Gwadar port by March 30.

The delivery of Russian wheat is expected to relieve the country's ongoing flour crisis, which recently caused flour price rises due to rising inflation and worsening economic conditions.

In Pakistan, the price of flour has increased to Rs 130 per kg, that of fine flour to Rs 150 per kg, and that of chakki flour to Rs 160 in some Places.

Across the country, there is a shortage of subsidized 10–20 kg flour bags, and black markets have emerged as a result of dual grain rates.

Wheat costs have risen to over Rs150 per kg in Sindh and Balochistan while in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), a 20kg bag of flour is being sold for a record-breaking Rs3,000 per bag. According to reports, the cost of flour is higher in Gilgit-Baltistan, Azad, and Jammu-Kashmir.

Pakistan’s flour crisis has escalated due to a worsening macroeconomic situation, depleting foreign exchange reserves, and the destruction of wheat crops in the floods.