Wheat Australia settles big sale to Iraq-sources

SYDNEY, May 30 (Reuters) An Australian agricultural joint venture, Wheat Australia, has settled a deal to sell 350,000 tonnes of wheat to Iraq, sources close to the transaction said on Tuesday.

Final details were still being determined, but major matters including price had been finally settled, the sources said. The deal was expected to be announced later on Tuesday.

The sale would be the first by newly formed Wheat Australia to Iraq, following that country's suspension of business dealings with Australia's monopoly wheat exporter AWB Ltd. over alleged kickbacks paid to the former government of dictator Saddam Hussein.

The deal follows months of negotiations and an impasse last week in talks between Wheat Australia and the Iraqi Grain Board, mainly over price.

REUTERS VJ KN0802