India Sugar
Steady in Maharashtra on muted demand at elevated rates
This story was originally published at 17:56 IST on 4 March 2026
Register to read our real-time news.Informist, Wednesday, Mar. 4, 2026
By Taniva Singha Roy
MUMBAI – Ex-mill prices of sugar were steady in Maharashtra Wednesday due to muted demand at elevated rates, traders said. In Uttar Pradesh, markets were shut on account of the Holi festival, they said.
Mills in Maharashtra kept prices steady after increasing them by INR 10 per 100 kilograms on Monday, said Mukesh Kuvadia, secretary of the Bombay Sugar Merchants Association. However, prices are likely to increase by INR 10-INR 20 per 100 kg in the coming days due to lower-than-expected sales quota for March, he said.
The government has set the domestic sugar sales quota for March at 2.25 million tonnes, down 2.2% from 2.30 million tonnes a year ago but unchanged from February.
In Uttar Pradesh, markets were shut on account of the Holi festival, said Naresh Gupta, a trader from north India. Markets will reopen on Thursday.
Prices may rise in the coming days owing to lower-than-expected quota amid high demand from ice-cream and cold-drink manufacturers during the summer, Gupta said. However, the gains are likely to be capped as sugar output in the state has increased. Sugar output in Uttar Pradesh rose over 2% on year to 7.4 million tonnes in Oct-Feb, even though sugarcane crushing decreased to 73.7 million tonnes from 76.6 million tonnes a year ago. The average sugar recovery rose to 10.05% from 9.45% last year, according to the National Federation of Cooperative Sugar Factories.
The following are the highlights of sugar prices in the domestic market:
--Flat at INR 3,820-INR 3,835 per 100 kg in Mumbai
--Flat at INR 3,995-INR 4,077 per 100 kg in Kolhapur
At 1539 IST, sugar prices on the Intercontinental Exchange were up 1.6% at 14.10 cents per pound, tracking gains in crude oil prices on the NYMEX. Higher crude oil prices lead to increased diversion of sucrose for ethanol production, reducing sugar availability. End
US$1 = INR 92.15
Edited by Saji George Titus
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