More Stories

Informist, Thursday, Aug 22, 2024

By J. Navya Sruthi

MUMBAI – The price of basmati rice in the wholesale market at Vashi in Maharashtra was down today owing to pressure from new crop arrivals in Punjab and Haryana, traders said. Wheat prices at Vashi rose owing to supply concerns and festive demand, but prices in Kota, Rajasthan, and Indore, Madhya Pradesh, were unchanged, they said.

The price of 1509 basmati RICE at Vashi was down to 7,000-7,500 rupees per 100 kg from 7,700-7,800 rupees per 100 kg, local wholesale broker Devendra Vora said. Prices fell as arrivals of the 1509 variety have started, Vora said, adding that prospects of a good crop are also weighing on prices.

Till there is any change in export restrictions on rice, prices of all rice varieties are seen going down, several traders said. Currently, the minimum export price for basmati rice is set at $950 per tn. Parboiled rice attracts 20% export duty.

After the export ban was imposed on the broken variety and non-basmati white rice in September 2022 and July 2023, respectively, India has only supplied white rice to a few countries to meet their food security needs based on requests from their governments.

Rice prices at the Bhavanipuram market in Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh, remained unchanged from the previous day at 5,500-6,200 rupees per 100 kg, Ravi Shankar, a local trader, said.

The all-India average wholesale price of rice was 3,910.67 rupees per 100 kg, down 21.72 rupees from 3,932.39 rupees on Wednesday, according to the consumer affairs department.

The price of mill-quality WHEAT rose by 50 rupees to 2,950 rupees per 100 kg at the Vashi mandi owing to strong demand ahead of festivals and limited supply, traders said. Transportation charges have also risen due to the festival season, Vora said. Major wheat mandis like Kota and Indore will be shut in the coming days due to festivals, which will limit supplies from these states, he said.

Wheat prices are expected to rise to 2,800 rupees per 100 kg soon due to the uncertainty of the government's open market sales scheme, traders said. Even if the government starts open market sales, prices may not fall but may only be steadied, Vora said, citing lower supply as the reason for this assessment.

Prices of mill-quality wheat at Kota were steady at 2,600-2,625 rupees per 100 kg, Aniket Mehta, a local wheat trader, said. Arrivals rose by 1,000 bags from Wednesday to 2,500 bags (1 bag = 50 kg) today as the weather was favourable, he said. Until Wednesday, arrivals were around 1,500 bags a day owing to heavy rain in the state.

Meanwhile, prices of the same variety of wheat were unchanged from Wednesday at 2,735-2,750 rupees per 100 kg in Indore, Lavish Shah, a local trader, said. Arrivals in Indore fell by 50 bags to 900 bags (1 bag = 100 kg), Shah said.

The all-India average wholesale price of wheat was 2,777.48 rupees per 100 kg, up 16.24 rupees from 2,761.24 rupees on Wednesday, according to the Department of Consumer Affairs.

At 1737 IST, the most-traded December wheat contract on the Chicago Board of Trade was 0.1% down from its previous close at $5.43 per bushel (1 bushel = 27.2 kg) due to excess supplies from the Black Sea region.

MAIZE prices were steady today in Madhya Pradesh's Chhindwara and Karnataka's Davangere, traders said. Arrivals of the new crop are likely to begin from September-end or early October, they said.

In Chhindwara, maize prices were steady from Wednesday at 2,500-2,590 rupees per 100 kg, Niraj Sahu, a local trader, said. Prices of maize in Davanagere were also steady at 2,850-2,900 rupees, Shiva Kumar, a local trader, said.

There were no arrivals today in Davanagere and local poultry farms are using up their stocks while others are buying from Madhya Pradesh, Kumar said.

At 1735 IST, the most-traded December maize contract on the CBOT was 0.25% down from its previous close at $3.97 per bushel owing to excess supply this year. The Pro Farmer crop tour, which tracks grain markets in the US, so far shows above-average potential for corn, adding to the expectations for the upcoming harvests, Reuters reported. Nebraska's corn yield prospects are at levels not seen since 2021, while Indiana's corn yield prospects on the Pro Farmer crop tour are at a three-year-high, it reported.

End

US$1 = 83.95 rupees

IST, or Indian Standard Time, is five-and-a-half hours ahead of GMT

Edited by Rajeev Pai

For users of real-time market data terminals, Informist news is available exclusively on the NSE Cogencis WorkStation.

Cogencis news is now Informist news. This follows the acquisition of Cogencis Information Services Ltd by NSE Data & Analytics Ltd, a 100% subsidiary of the National Stock Exchange of India Ltd. As a part of the transaction, the news department of Cogencis has been sold to Informist Media Pvt Ltd.

Informist Media Tel +91 (22) 6985-4000 

Send comments to feedback@informistmedia.com

© Informist Media Pvt. Ltd. 2024. All rights reserved.