Cumin prices dip 0.5% on profit-booking

Cumin seeds prices remained volatile in the last two days owing to anticipation of low output in February on the eve of new crop arrivals.

The price of cumin seeds for February delivery closed at Rs 8,166 a quintal on Wednesday on the MCX, down by 0.57 per cent from the previous day's close of Rs 8,213.

The price of the near-month contract on the MCX too dropped by 0.45 per cent from Rs 8,062 on Tuesday to Rs 8,025 on Wednesday. The fall in prices on Wednesday is mainly attributed to profit-booking by traders.

The sudden spurt in prices on Tuesday is believed to have been triggered by the reports of a shortfall in the crop output as a result of fog in Saurashtra, which is set to hit the crop this year. Farmers are also anticipating rains in the region, which may result in a 20 per cent crop loss.

Bhaskar Shah, managing director of Jabs International, a cumin seeds trader in Mumbai, is, however, hopeful that the prices would not sustain the high level for long, owing to estimated lower exports and higher production next season.

"We have enough stocks for this season to the extent of 10 lakh bags of 60 kg each. Apart from that, the bumper crop this year in Rajasthan and Gujarat is expected to hamper the entire bullish sentiment this year, Shah said.

This year, the country exported about 18,000 tonne of cumin seeds to Europe and the Middle East and exporters are hopeful of shipping another 2,000-3,000 tonne before the end of the financial year. But, next year, Shah projected less exports from the country owing to glut in supply from Turkey, Syria and Iran.

"We export just 15 to 17 per cent of our produce, while these countries are solely dependent on the exports markets with the total exports of 75 to 80 per cent of their produce. Hence, they would boost their supplies in our exporting markets, thereby eating up our market share," added Shah.

Last year, Gujarat had produced about 60,000 tonne of jeera, while Rajasthan contributed 45,000 tonne to the country's total output of 135,000 tonne.

With at least 30,000 tonne of carry-forward stocks this year and cultivation of excess cotton across Gujarat, the scenario for cumin seeds in the state has changed drastically this year.

The world's consumption of cumin seeds "� barring India "� stands at 25,000-30,000 mt.