The Ethiopian government's purchasing agency has issued an international tender to buy 720,000 tonnes of milling wheat, European traders said on Wednesday. The tender deadline is February 3, they said. The wheat can be sourced from optional origins. Shipment is sought within three months of the opening of a letter of credit for the purchase.

Traders said they expected shipment to take place during March, April and May. The United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organisation warned in December that close to 12 million people across Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia are in need of food assistance as farmers struggle with the knock-on effects of repeated droughts in the region. Ethiopia made a series of very large wheat purchases between October 2015 and April 2016 after drought damaged crops.

Copyright Reuters, 2017