Despite government suspended the sugar import and re-export, the illegal sugar trading are still continued at the border area of Myawaddy in Kayin State

Illegal sugar trading continues at the border area of Myawady in Kayin State despite the government suspension of sugar import and re-export, an official of a local sugar trade group said. 

To control the unstable foreign currency exchange rate, the Ministry of Commerce temporarily stopped issuing re-export licenses for sugar and fuel in August. 

Although sugar re-exports are suspended, there are still illegal imports and a large local stockpile of sugar locally, as there are few buyers in China, U Win Htay, vice president of the Myanmar Sugar and Cane Related Products Association, said. 

“There is illegal trading, mostly in Myawady. There is plenty of sugar locally. It is hard to estimate the amount of the sugar in Myanmar, so we should stop the smuggling,” he said. 

The sugar season is from December to April. As sugar prices in the global and Myanmar markets are not much different, sugar mills are buying sugarcane for less than the amount paid last season, according to sugarcane farmers, he said. 

One tonne of sugarcane was priced at K50,000 last year compared to K45000 this year, so farmers are losing K5000 per tonne.

“The sugarcane price goes up or down depending on the price of sugar,” he said.

If there is very low demand for sugar from the mills, then the sugarcane farmers are likely to suffer a bigger loss, he said, so illegal imports of sugar must be stopped, he said.

Imported sugar is exported to China with the re-export license.

(The Myanmar Times: https://www.mmtimes.com/news/illegal-sugar-trade-continues-myawady-border-area.html )

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