The Government Trading Corporation of Iran (GTC), a state-owned agency, is believed to be the one that purchased a lot of wheat from Russia in August during its international tender.

One European trader stated, "The Iranian purchase appears to be much larger than initially thought. However, the total amount is still up for debate and there is a lot of disagreement on the market." On August 25, traders reported that they had purchased wheat, but were unsure of the exact tonnage.

The current estimates for the market range from 500,000 to 1,000,000 metric tons and even as high as 2.2 millions.

The majority of the sales were expected to come from Russia. One trader stated that Iran was looking for a September-December shipment. "But September has almost passed and I only see two ships in Russia with Iran, so that tends to go against the high end of estimates."

"But even if a million tonnes were correct, it would still be a mistake."

The prices paid ranged from 270 to 300 euros (318 to 341,56 dollars) per ton, cost and freight included. Iran has traditionally refused to purchase grain in U.S. dollar.

The continued dry weather in Iran has led traders to expect even greater demand.

(source: Reuters)