Pakistan’s sugar mills are looking to India as a possible destination for surplus stocks after New Delhi approved duty-free imports of up to 10 lakh metric tonnes of raw sugar.
India introduced the temporary import window to improve domestic availability and ease pressure on sugar prices, which have risen in recent weeks. The move has caught the attention of Pakistan’s sugar industry, which says mills are holding around 1.2 million tonnes of surplus sugar.
A senior representative of the Pakistan Sugar Mills Association has urged Islamabad to consider allowing exports to India. For Pakistani mills, the neighbouring market could offer lower transportation costs while helping reduce inventories, strengthen cash flows and free up funds for the upcoming sugarcane-crushing season.
However, no Pakistan-to-India sugar deal has been approved. Bilateral trade remains heavily restricted amid strained relations between the two countries. Therefore, Pakistani mills cannot simply take advantage of India’s duty-free import policy without government decisions and an approved trade mechanism.
India’s sugar-price pressures have been linked to supply concerns, while the government has also cited hoarding and speculative activity. Diversion of sugarcane products towards ethanol has added to the wider supply debate.
For now, India’s import window represents a potential opportunity for Pakistan—not an active trade route.