The U.S. Department of Agriculture on July 25 extended by 24 hours its invitation issued July 23 to buy domestic raw cane sugar to exchange for refined sugar re-export credits in an effort to reduce the domestic sugar surplus.
The U.S.D.A.’s Commodity Credit Corp. seeks to buy 43,046 tonnes of raw cane sugar under the latest invitation. Sugar now must be offered to the C.C.C. by 1:30 p.m. Central Time July 26, one day later than the original time. The U.S.D.A. will issue a catalog of quantities offered by 7:30 p.m. Central Time on July 26. Price offers for the quantities listed in the catalog still are due July 29 and successful offerors will be notified July 30.
The invitation and exchange will be administered similarly to the invitation announced June 18. Results of that tender were announced July 10 and resulted in the C.C.C. buying about 91,000 tonnes of domestic refined beet and raw cane sugar that were exchanged for re-export credits and resulted in the removal of about 300,000 tonnes of imported supply at a cost of $43 million.
The July 23 action is expected to remove an additional 136,000 tonnes of imported raw cane sugar at a cost of $18.7 million, the U.S.D.A. said.
The latest tender is for raw cane sugar only because raw cane posed the greatest risk for forfeitures at this time, the U.S.D.A. said. The latest tender also requires sugar offered must be pledged as collateral for C.C.C. loans.
