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LATEST NEWS UPDATES | Wheat prices drop on extra allocation on PDS

Wheat prices drop on extra allocation on PDS

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published Published on May 6, 2010   modified Modified on May 6, 2010

Wheat prices started showing a downward movement today after an Empowered Group of Ministers (EGoM) headed by FM Pranab Mukherjee okayed the release of an additional 30 lakh tonnes of wheat and rice for the poor, over and above the current PDS allocation, for the next six months. The most-active wheat contract was reportedly trading around 0.60% lower at Rs 1,158.40/qtl on the back of fresh selling in anticipation of more wheat supply to consumers from the governmetn’s overflowing stocks. Commodity analysts expect the range for wheat to be pressured in the range of Rs 1150-1170/qtl over the coming days as well. Commodity market reports quoted analysts as saying that India's wheat futures saw "extended losses" on Thursday afternoon on hopes of higher supply in the domestic market.

India's wheat stocks on May 1 stood at 30.8 million tonnes against a buffer norm of 4.0 million tonnes, seven time over the norm, infact. A bumper harvest projected this year could lead to availability far outstripping demand for the fourth consecutive year, except for some apprehensions among traders and analysts that the excessive heat druing the day in March could impact quality of the crop definitely, besides impacting quantity to some extent, too.

Wednesday’s EGoM also extended permission of wheat product exports by an year upto March 31 2011, although a food ministry proposal to impose 40% import tax on wheat was considered but not decided on. That, especially in the immediate aftermath of a recent USDA report projecting that wheat output this season would be much lower than an estimated 82 m tonnes, at only 79 m tonnes. The propsosal was meant to curb cheap wheat imports from Australia and Russia. A week ago, Australian wheat at Chennai sold at Rs 11, 007.74/tonne, compared with Rs 14,245.20/tonne in Punjab.

Since global wheat prices are ruling low and are expected to do so for some time now, opening up wheat exports does not make to much economic sense right now. But extending wheat product export time limit could, atleast to a niche Indian expat market that buys rava, sooji, dalia etc.

But the decision to open up wheat product exports may only have very limited success , especially in terms of storage, since the country shipped only 23,000 tonnes of wheat products out of 6.5 lakh tonnes that permission was given for last year upto March 31, 2010. Just how bad the global situation is on wheat product prices was evident with Pakistani flour millers association recently pressuring the government there to allow export of 0.2 m tonnes of wheat products to Kabul along with a subsidy of $50/tonne although wheat sold cheaper in Afghanistan.

"Theoretically, allowing exports without subsidy is fine, but it will be difficult in practice since international prices of wheat and wheat products are low," a Wheat Products Promotion Society official said, pointing out that it was for this very reason that wheat product exports were limited last year. .In the event, only the logic of saving some spend on extended storage of wheat even as a bumper fresh crop desperately cries out for storage space could have driven the Centre’s decision on wehat product exports.


The Economic Times, 7 May, 2010, http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/markets/commodities/Wheat-prices-drop-on-extra-allocation-on-PDS/articleshow/5901044.cms


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