The State Bank of Pakistan has revised the sugar export quota for 200,000 metric tons and told commercial banks to process shipments only from eligible mills in Punjab and Sindh. Mills in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa remain on hold until that province endorses its share. The central bank issued the revised instructions after the Ministry of National Food Security and Research updated province-wise and mill-wise quotas from information supplied by the Pakistan Sugar Mills Association.
Punjab and Sindh move; KP stays on hold
The State Bank said the governments of Punjab and Sindh have endorsed the revised quotas for mills in their provinces. Banks, called authorised dealers in the circular, may process export transactions for those eligible mills, subject to the conditions the central bank has set.
The endorsement from the Government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa "is still awaited", the State Bank’s circular said. The revised sugar export quota for that province will be communicated only after the Ministry of National Food Security and Research confirms it. Banks may handle export transactions for eligible mills there only once that confirmation arrives. On Tuesday the State Bank directed commercial banks to keep those exports on hold until the provincial administration endorses the overseas sales.
Export conditions and quota basis
Exports must be made against a sight letter of credit or advance payment. A sight letter of credit is a bank undertaking that the exporter is paid when the shipping documents are presented. Shipments may go only by sea. The State Bank has not specified a shipment deadline.
Money due under letters of credit must be received within the regulatory period the State Bank already prescribes for export proceeds. Banks must satisfy themselves that the client and the transaction are genuine, in line with the applicable regulations, and they must follow the ministry’s office memorandum enclosed with the instructions. Each Friday, authorised dealers must send a report on sugar export transactions and shipment updates to the Director, Foreign Exchange Operations Department, SBP-BSC, in the prescribed format. SBP-BSC is the State Bank’s banking services corporation, which receives that operational report.
On 9 October 2026 the ministry sent a revised sugar export quota list, set out province by province and mill by mill, using figures from the Pakistan Sugar Mills Association. The same communication corrected the names of three sugar mills.
A cabinet committee on sugar export decided that allocation among mills would be strictly on a provincial quota basis, determined by verified crushing-season capacity and performance, and that ministries would not involve themselves in the allocation. Banks are required to implement the federal cabinet’s decision for the export of 200,000 metric tons of sugar.
In September 2026 the Economic Coordination Committee of the Cabinet allowed the export of 200,000 metric tons on certain terms and conditions. The federal cabinet has ratified that decision. The committee is the cabinet body that handles major economic decisions.
Timeline: what has happened so far
- September 2026: The Economic Coordination Committee allowed the export of 200,000 metric tons of sugar on set terms, and the federal cabinet ratified the decision.
- 9 October 2026: The Ministry of National Food Security and Research sent revised province-wise and mill-wise quotas drawn from the Pakistan Sugar Mills Association, and corrected the names of three sugar mills.
- Tuesday: The State Bank told banks to process eligible mills in Punjab and Sindh under the revised quotas and to hold exports by mills in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa until that province’s endorsement is confirmed.
Aasan alfaaz mein
State Bank ne sugar ki export ke rules update kar diye hain. Punjab aur Sindh ki mills apna hissa bahar bhej sakti hain. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa ki mills abhi export nahi kar saktin, jab tak soobai hakumat quota manzoor na kare. Maal sirf samundar se jayega, aur paisa advance mein ya sight letter of credit ke zariye aana chahiye.
