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Informist, Friday, Jan. 3, 2025

By J. Navya Sruthi

MUMBAI – Prices of wheat rose in Indore Friday due to a shortage in supply, while they were steady in other key markets, traders said. Prices of maize and rice were steady in key spot markets. Traders expect prices of wheat to rise and maize to fall next week. 

Prices of mill-quality WHEAT in Indore rose by INR 10 per 100 kilograms to INR 3,090-INR 3,230 per 100 kg, local trader Gaurav Kochar said. However, prices of mill-quality wheat were steady at INR 2,950-INR 2,975 per 100 kg in Rajasthan's Kota, local trader Aniket Mehta said. Prices were steady in Navi Mumbai's Vashi market at INR 3,350 per 100 kg, wholesale dealer Devendra Vora said.

Wheat arrivals in Kota were up by 3,000 bags from the previous day at 5,000 bags (1 bag = 50 kg), Mehta said. Arrivals rose as farmers were clearing off last year's crop and high prices also made farmers sell the crop, traders said.

Market participants and experts said the supply of wheat is very low in domestic markets, which is leading to a continuous rise in wheat prices. Prices are in an uptrend despite the government's efforts to increase the supply through the open market sales scheme. 

The Food Corp. of India has sold 495,000 tonnes of wheat so far in 2024-25 (Apr-Mar) under the open market sales scheme, according to FCI data. On Wednesday, the corporation sold wheat at an average rate of INR 2,938.5 per 100 kg, up from INR 2,811.2 at the previous week's auction. 

In November, the government allocated 2.5 million tonnes of wheat to the FCI to sell in the open market till Mar. 31 at a reserve price of fair and average quality wheat at 2,325 rupees per 100 kg. 

Typically, FCI starts wheat auctions in July or August. However, this year the government delayed open market sales of wheat till December due to lower stocks in the Central pool.

Prices of MAIZE at Davanagere in Karnataka were steady at INR 2,000-INR 2,380 per 100 kg. Arrivals were also steady at 2,000 bags (1 bag = 60 kg), local trader Shiva Kumar said. Prices are likely to fall more than INR 100 per 100 kg if the rains stop in Tamil Nadu and the weather gets warmer, Kumar said.

Usually, the demand for maize in Karnataka is high till the Tamil Nadu crop starts arriving in the market. This is because Karnataka also caters to maize demand from Tamil Nadu. However, this time, the ongoing rainfall in Tamil Nadu led to higher moisture in the grain available in the state and aided demand for Karnataka maize, Kumar said. Cloudy weather makes the maize drying process difficult, pulling down prices of the commodity due to the high moisture content in the grain. 

Prices of Sona Masoori RICE were steady at INR 5,500-INR 6,400 per 100 kg at Bhavanipuram in Andhra Pradesh, said Ravi Shankar, a local trader. Prices of new Basmati rice were steady in the Vashi market at INR 6,000-INR 6,400 per 100 kg, Vora said. Prices of Sonam rice from Gujarat were also steady at INR 5,600-INR 5,700 per 100 kg, Vora said.  End

Edited by Saji George Titus

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