Cashew kernel exports showed an upward trend in the first half of the current financial year by registering a jump of 44.5 per cent in value terms. Exports amounted to Rs 1,585.61 crore for the six-month period ended September 2008 compared to the corresponding period last year.
The rise was mainly attributed to a 67 per cent increase in the prices of the commodity in the international markets.
In volume terms, however, the exports were only marginally up by 2.6 per cent to 58,647 tonnes compared to the same period last financial year. Exporters earned a huge jump of 40.85 per cent in unit value realisation to Rs 270.36 a kg compared to the same period last year, according to figures compiled by Cashew Export Promotion Council of India (CEPCI).
The country’s 3,500 cashew-processing units, which are largely dependent on imports of raw cashew nut, imported 420,270 tonnes in the first six months of the year, a rise of 7.54 per cent compared to the corresponding period last year.
The value of imports of raw nuts went up by a whopping 81 per cent to Rs 1,728.08 crore in April to September 2008 compared to the same period last year. The unit value of each kilogram of cashewnut rose by 68.24 per cent to Rs 41.06 during the period against the same period last year.
In the international market, the prices of cashew kernel (W320 grade) had hit an all-time high of $3.60 a pound in July this year as against $2.15 a pound in September 2007, a rise of 67.4 per cent. Presently, the prices are ruling at $2.80-2.90.
“The current year is a record for cashew-processing industry as the unit value realisation has touched an all-time high. However, the sales in the US and UK may see a decline as a result of the global financial crisis. We are keenly watching the situation,” said Giridhar Prabhu, Managing Director, Achal Cashew, an export house from Mangalore.
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The cashew-processing industry has been witnessing an unprecedented growth in the sales in the domestic market as the consumption is steadily rising. The prices have hit an all-time high of Rs 350-400 a kg in the wholesale market while the retail prices are ruling at over Rs 550 a kg.
A major reason for this is attributed to a 30 per cent drop in the production in west coast and an overall drop of 15 per cent nationally. The domestic consumption is pegged at 100,000 tonnes for the current year.