Pulses market expected to trade steady till mid-April

The pulses market is likely to remain steady till mid-April, followed by a possible change in market dynamics later. Market sources believe that prices will not crash in the next 2-3 weeks as the demand is likely to sustain and the arrival of fresh stock is yet to reach its peak.

The price of Chana is expected go down on the back of normal crop production (55 lakh tonne). Chana is currently traded in the spot market within a range of Rs 2,150-2,250 a quintal. Though traders are of the opinion that chana may drop down to Rs 1,800 a quintal, commodity analysts see it falling only to Rs 2,000 a quintal.

"At present, the pulses market is steady and the trend is likely to continue. Arrivals are limited and in case of urad, we have very thin arrival. Moreover, farmers are holding their stocks and not selling at these rates," said Shrikant Heda, a Latur-based trader. Tur, which had dropped to Rs 2,300 a quintal last week in Latur, is presently trading at Rs 2,405 a quintal. The arrival quantity of chana is 5,000 bags and that of tur is 5,000-7000 bags a day.

In Latur, the rate of Urad is between Rs 2600-2700 a quintal. In Indore,the spot price of chana is Rs 2,170 a quintal, urad is trading in the range of Rs 3,600-3,700 a quintal and masoor is quoting at Rs 2,350 a quintal. "Masoor may go up by another Rs 200 to Rs 2,500 a quintal," said Dipak Shah, an Indore-based trader.

Masoor is reported to be affected with the recent rains in Uttar Pradesh and some parts of Madhya Pradesh. "As acreage under masoor is down by 8 per cent and the expected production is already less by 15-20 per cent, the recent rains have further worsened conditions," said Rajesh Verma, a commodity analyst with Agriwatch commodities.

Urad may see a slight fall on the back of fresh arrival. "As 2.5 lakh tonne of urad is expected this season, the urad market may see some bearishness," the analyst added. Most of the urad crop is from Andhra Pradesh. Given its proximity, the prices in Latur are lesser than the prevailing prices in Indore or Delhi.

On the back of exports, the rate of white gram (kabuli chana) in Indore has risen to Rs 3,200 a quintal from Rs 2,700.

Market sources said that the prices of kabuli chana are also finding support because of exports. According to analysts, Tur may also see a jump of around Rs 150-200 a quintal in its prices from the prevailing Rs 2,400-2,450 a quintal, with decreased acreage and expectations of lower production.

But, market reports suggest that the expected decline in the prices of chana will not allow a significant rise in the prices of other pulses as was the case last year.

Moreover, analysts believe that peas (which act as substitute for chana) will not rise on the back of optimum chana production.