War For Prime Shelf Space Between Retailers And FMCG Players - March 31, 2010

Although Colgate and Hindustan Unilever which have over 80% of the oral care market are pushing for shelf space according to their respective market shares, for Future Group, it is just a routine practice.

Devendra Chawla, Business Head - Private Brands of Future Group said that he doesn't think FMCG companies would have any problems.

He said that they as a retailer would sell everyone's products be it private labels or national brands.

Meanwhile, for Big Bazaar, private labels earn them almost double the margins than what they get from branded national players.

Hence, they are now going all out not only in terms of new product launches but also in terms of visibility.

Moreover, in the long term, the brand will only inhabit bigger space only if it is successful.

Thus, it will all depend on how strong you become in your respective category over a period of time.

Many Big Bazaar private labels already command over 25% share in their respective categories posing a threat for the few national players.

But, however, with other retailers also betting big on their in-house labels, FMCG players will soon be in for their moment of truth.

Previously, it was said that poor monsoon rains has not impacted rural India's increasing craze for shampoos, toothpastes and hair-oils as demand for these personal care products rose faster in rural areas than urban areas stated market researcher AC Nielsen.

The numbers made consumer product companies busy expanding their reach in the countryside happy while companies closely watch rural demand trends in monsoon months as they can tweak their strategies accordingly.

The Rs 2,800-crore Dabur, which draws about 50% of its sales from rural and semi-urban markets, posted its highest growth in 18 quarters in the July-September quarter while initiatives like low unit packs of Chyawanprash and Dabur Amla, and new products like Amla FlowerMagic hair oil have accelerated this growth.

However, earlier, it was said that organized retailers and fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) companies have started their spar yet again as the time approaches for redrawing of annual sales contracts.

Both sides are unable to agree on common point and are infighting over some issues. These issues comprise margin, supplies and credit period to be given for payment of goods purchased by retailers.

Though some retailers have taken a firm stand against the FMCG companies, the balance of power continues to be skewed in favour of the latter, because modern trade is not a large contributor to overall sales of a company.

Meanwhile, a study said that India can surpass China as a global production hub for consumer durables with rationalization of tax structure and policy support from the government.

A study was conducted by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) and PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) on behalf of the National Manufacturing Competitiveness Council (NMCC).

Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) are products that are sold quickly at relatively low cost. Though the absolute profit made on FMCG products is relatively small, they generally sell in large quantities, so the cumulative profit on such products can be large.

FMCG products are generally replaced or fully used up over a short period of days, weeks, or months, and within one year. This contrasts with durable goods or major appliances such as kitchen appliances, which are generally replaced over a period of several years.

Govt May Reduce Sugar Stock Limit - March 30, 2010

With a view to keep the prices under control, the government is planning to further bring down the stock limit of sugar for bulk users like - soft drink and ice cream makers from the current 10 days

As of now, if the sugar is sourced from domestic market, bulk users cannot hold sugar stock more than 10 days of the requirement. However, no such ceiling on imported sugar is levied.

The parliamentary standing committee on finance had suggested that after assessing the overall demand-Supply position, the stock limit period might be further reduced from 10 days.

The government in August 2009 had issued an order striking a stockholding limit on large consumers of sugar - who use more than 10 quintals per month as raw material, to rein in the spiralling sugar prices.

Since last month, the stockholding limit has been reduced to 10 days. On 20th February the notification came into effect, will be in force till 18th August 2010.

About 60 % of the India's total sugar demand of 23 mn tonnes is from bulk consumers, like - manufacturers of soft drink, ice-cream, biscuit and confectionery.

The food ministry is also mulling over the committee's recommendation of asking the bulk users to source their sugar requirement, through imports to wave over any shortfall in the country.

These 2 proposals have come when the industry has urged the government to impose import duty claiming that the realisation cost of sugar has fallen below the cost of production. Meanwhile, in order to bridge the demand supply gap, the government has allowed duty-free import of raw and refined sugar from April 2009.

Meanwhile, the International Sugar Organisation (ISO) said that since mid February the import deals of Sugar have slowed down as the prices in the domestic market become favourable. The domestic prices fell below import parity levels.

The organisation said that the global sugar market was eagerly looking at the developments in India on the sugar front, with the world's largest importer of Sugar (India) was witnessing a cooling-off period in February 2010.

The sugar prices in domestic market have fallen sharply from the record highs of more than $880 per tonnes in January 2010. However, in last month, the sugar spot price ex-Kolhapur had scaled back 20 % to reach $700 per tonne.

Pepper Futures Rose On Buying Support- March 25, 2010

The pepper futures Tuesday surged following the strong buying support amid limited supply and bullish activities.

On NCDEX, the April contract surged by Rs 407 to close at Rs 14,775 a quintal while May and June contracts were up by Rs 420 and Rs 386 respectively to close at Rs 15,036 and Rs 15,225 a quintal.

The total turnover fell by 3,350 tonnes to 13,955 tonnes. The total open interest soared by 256 tonnes indicating additional buying.

The April open interest surged by 42 tonnes to 7,134 tonnes while that of May and June rose by 167 tonnes and 15 tonnes respectively.

The spot prices in tandem with the futures market trend and strong buying support rose by Rs 200 a quintal to close at Rs 13,800 (un-garbled) and Rs 14,300 (MG 1) a quintal.

Meanwhile, the prices quoted for different origins per tonne in US dollars c&f New York stood at MG 1 Asta - 3,350-3,450 followed by Lampong asta - 3,375; Vietnam 500 GL FAQ - 2,650 - 2,700 (fob); Vietnam Asta -3,150; Brazil 500GL and 550 GL - 2,850 and 2,950 respectively (fob) and Brazil Asta 3,000 (fob); Sri Lanka 500 GL and 550 GL- 2,780 and 2,860 respectively (fob); Sri Lanka 600 GL 2,960 (fob); Spot MLVB Asta - 3,350-3,550 ex warehouse New York/New Jersey; Vietnam white pepper double washed- $4,325 and Muntok white pepper - $5,000+.

Oil Falls To Near $82 After 2-Day Rally- March 19, 2010

Paring two days of gains that were fueled by signs of US crude demand may be improving, oil prices declined to near $82 a barrel on March 18 in Asia.

At late afternoon Singapore time in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange, benchmark crude for April delivery was down 75 cents to $82.18 a barrel.

The contract rose $1.23 to settle at $82.93 yesterday.

Meanwhile, oil had raised more than $3 the previous two days after being helped higher by a larger-than-expected drop in gasoline and distillates inventories last week>

And also with a smaller-than-expected increase in crude supplies as per the Energy Information Agency data.

The 12-nation Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries accounts for about 40% of global crude output.

At a quarterly meeting in Vienna, it said that it would maintain the group's production quotas.

Moreover, it is said that OPEC ministers are relaxed with the situation and are comfortable to float along with the positive and improving data flow.

In other Nymex trading in April contracts, heating oil fell 1.87 cents to $2.136 a gallon, and gasoline dropped 1.85 cents to $2.310 a gallon.

Natural gas slid 4.1 cents to $4.262 per 1,000 cubic feet while i n London, Brent crude was down 73 cents at $81.23 on the ICE futures exchange.

Rabi Oilseeds Production Surged 2.3%- March 18, 2010

According to the estimates made by the Central Organisation for Oil Industry and Trade (COOIT), the production of oilseeds during rabi may have increased 2.3 per cent but the overall production for the oil year ending October is likely to be 9.2 per cent lower.

As per the estimate made public at the 31 {+s} {+t} All-India Rabi Seminar of Oilseeds, Oil Trade and Industry, the rabi oilseed production is likely to be 94.6 lakh ones (lt) as compared to 92.3 lt last year.

Moreover, the major contributor will be rapeseed/mustard with its output estimated at 63.2 lt as compared to 62 lt a year ago.

Meanwhile, the production of groundnut is also seen higher than last year at 18.3 lt (17 lt) followed by sesame seed is seen up at 3.3 lt (2.8 lt) while that of linseed is 1.6 lt (1.3 lt).

Besides this, the sunflower production may be lower at 6.7 lt (7.5 lt) and that of safflower at 1.5 lt (1.7 lt).

The rise in production comes despite a decline in the coverage of oilseed.

According to COOIT, the area under oilseeds this rabi has been 94.07 lakh hectares (lh) as compared to 98.31 lh a year ago.

The area under rabi groundnut rose to 10.17 lh (9.52 lh) but that of rapeseed/mustard fell to 65.07 lh (66.87 lh).

Meanwhile, the overall production of oilseeds this season (November 2009-October 2010) is now projected at 329.2 lt as compared to 338.4 lt a year ago.

On the other hand, the Solvent Extractors Association, in a statement, said that the production of rapeseed/mustard was likely to increase despite lower acreage as the weather condition was favourable.

However, going by the production estimate, the availability of vegetable oil from the oilseeds, including cottonseed and copra, would be 78.8 lt as against 82.1 lt last year.

Prices Turn Weak At Kochi Tea Auction- March 15, 2010

The tea prices of several varieties eased at the Kochi tea auction despite the substantial increase in leaf arrivals at the auction, overall the arrivals were normal.

The arrival of dust stood at 10,82,000 kg as compared to 4,15,000 kg of leaf.

Meanwhile, the prices of good liquoring dust teas remained firm to dearer, while the plain black and grainy teas were steady to irregular.

At the dust auction, AVT was an active bidder while Kerala State Civil Supplies Corporation and loose tea traders lent moderate support.

In the meantime, Hindustan Unilever was selective pursuing quality.

However, the exporters turned active at lower levels. While, Tata Tea as well as upcountry buyers remained less active.

While at the leaf auction, the select whole leaf grades as well as bolder broken and fannings remained steady to firm.

However, most other grades quoted substantially lower this week.

The medium orthodox grades sold around last week's levels. While, most other medium grades quoted lower and found heavy withdrawals.

However, there was good demand from Hindustan Unilever on Nilgiri whole leaf grades and fannings.

While, the traditional exporters and those to CIS countries remained selective.

At the dust auction, Chinnar SFD fetched the top price at Rs 130 along with Kodanad BOPD at Rs 128, Pasuparai SFD at Rs 127 and Pasuparai FD at Rs 121.

While, at the leaf auction Chamraj FOP fetched the top price at Rs 308 along with Chamraj OP at Rs 253, Glendale FOP at Rs 230 and Glendale FOPS at Rs 225.

Govt Gives Millers 7 More Days To Sell Sugar- March 12, 2010

The government has partially relaxed norms for millers to sell non-levy sugar quota for March in the open market.

This it did by giving them seven more days to sell the allocated quantity.

Meanwhile, the "validity period" for each week in the month is extended by 7 days so mills can sell quota for week ending March 31 by April 7.

This as said by the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution in an order dated March 10.

The government had earlier asked millers to sell a part of their monthly non-levy quota every week.

But, failing which, the unsold quantity will be converted into levy sugar and sold at subsidised rate through the public distribution system.

However, millers were struggling to sell sugar according to the new release mechanism, leading to a sharp drop in sugar prices.

They were demanding relaxation in the rule to stabilize falling prices.

In Kolhapur, a key market in top sugar producer Maharashtra, the price of the most traded S-variety sugar fell 2.09% to Rs 3,056.25 per 100 kg on Thursday.

The price has fallen by nearly a quarter since hitting a record high of Rs 3,972.3 on Jan 7.

India's sugar output for 2009/10 is expected to touch 16 million tonnes and output touched 13.3 million tonnes by the end of February.

They have done about 13.3 (million tonnes) at the end of February and many factories are now shutting down in the south and north.

Earlier, Biscuit makers stated that the government's decision to reduce stock limits of sugar to 10 days will have an unfavorable impact on their production and also that they should be allowed to keep supplies for minimum 30 days.

Federation of Biscuits Manufacturers of India (FBIM) Secretary Mallika Verma stated that any control imposed on stock limit of sugar will restrict manufacturer's freedom in the manufacture of finished goods.

Previously, Kanhaiyalal Gidwani, a senior Maharashtra Congress leader has urged the Prime Minister to limit industrial users from consuming domestically produced sugar, stating that sugar prices could touch a high Rs 60 a kg if supply is not hiked.

Such a step can augment the supply by a hefty 40 lakh tonne as 20% of the domestic demand come from industrial users.

He said the Centre should change sugar control policy by restricting industrial users like manufacturers of soft drinks, fruit-juices, alcohol, chocolates and ice-creams from using locally produced sugar and instead allow them to import the sweetener.

Moreover, the Centre has extended the stock limit order for sugar till September for Sugar, where the states are authorized to take action against the hoarders and black marketers.

Earlier the validity of the anti-hoarding order was issued in March, 2009 and was supposed to expire on 31st of January, which has been further extended till September. Previously, the order was extended for 6 months till July, 2009.

However, earlier, it was said that inspite of the promise made by Mr. Sharad Pawar, Food Minister of the country, to reduce the retail prices of sugar, still the prices are increasing.

Therefore, to boost the domestic supply and temper prices, the Prime Minister - Dr. Manmohan Singh approved the proposal to sell imported raw sugar stocks lying at Mundra and Kandla ports.

Meanwhile, the government had announced a vital repose of norms for the import of raw sugar, where the sugar could be refined anywhere in the country and not only by the mill that had imported it.

Mr. Sharad Pawar, Agriculture Minister said to accelerate the refining of raw sugar and improve its availability in the market, the government has relaxed the central excise rules to enable the processing of sugar in any mills of the state.

On the other hand, Mr. Sharad Pawar our Food Minister has said, the country will have enough sugar this year, but the prices of sugar will continue to be higher because of the low output in sugar. Further he said rising prices of sugar is a big concern for the government.

Along with the Food Minister our Prime Minister Man Mohan Singh in a meeting with the Indian Sugar Mills Association (ISMA) has also expressed concern regarding rising of sugar prices and their possible impact on consumer prices.

Commexes Turnover During Apr-Feb Up By Over 50%Feb - March 11, 2010

The turnover of 23 commodity exchanges surged more than 50 per cent to Rs 69,72,216 crore till February of this financial year on account of a sharp rise in participation of agricultural and other commodities, the Forward Markets Commission (FMC), the commodity markets regulator said.

However the turnover of commodity bourses in the same period last year had stood at Rs 46,44,496 crore, it said.

The maximum of business has come from the futures trade in farm items like the guarseed as well as soyabean, soy oil and mustard seed as well as commodities like the energy and crude oil, as per the data released by FMC showed.

Among 23 commodity bourses, the turnover of Multi Commodity Exchange surged 42 per cent to Rs 57,67,386 crore for the period between April-February of FY'10 as compared to Rs 40,59,944 crore in the same period last year. Meanwhile, the turnover of National Commodity & Derivatives Exchange grew sharply by 69 per cent to Rs 8,33,444 crore as compared to Rs 49,2761 crore, while the turnover of NMCE shot up by five folds to Rs 1,94,380 crore as against Rs 39,625 crore in the review period, the data showed.

Meanwhile, the turnover of ICEX, the new entrant stood at Rs 1,01,301 crore since the launch of the exchange on November 21, 2009.

While, the business of regional exchange National Board of Trade surged sharply to over Rs 25,000 crore so far this fiscal.

Currently, there are four national and 19 regional exchanges in the country.

Meanwhile, with a view to bring international best practices to the business and transform it completely, the Government of India is gearing up to liberalize Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in commodities broking,

However, the market participants feel the government should allow more institutional players for the commodities market to develop.

The Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion is expected to move a proposal very soon before the Union Cabinet that permits 100% FDI in broking business. The Ministry of finance has already endorsed for this proposal.

The government is proposing to allow full FDI in commodities broking by adding it to the eligible list of activities permitted to be carried out by Non Banking Finance Companies (NBFCs) with 100% of FDI.

Uttar Pradesh Produces 41.84 Lakh Tonnes Of Sugar- March 10, 2010

The millers in Uttar Pradesh have produced 41.84 lakh tonnes of sugar so far, and are expected to produce a total 45.28 lakh tonnes of sugar by the end of the crushing season.

The state of Uttar Pradesh in last season 2008-09, had produced 40.64 lakh tonnes of sugar and the state government is confident that the total production this season would rose by 12% to 45.28 lakh tonnes of sugar.

According to Cane Commissioner Sudhir M Bobde, about 509 lakh tonnes of cane was crushed by millers till March 7 and they expect to enhance the sugar production by 12% as compared to last year.

The sugar production at the start of the current crushing season was expected to fall drastically on account of reduced cane acreage as well as droughts in most parts of UP and then the farmers agitation over higher prices for cane.

However, at a later stage, there was an upswing in the production after the handsome prices being offered to cane farmers by millers and improved weather conditions.

Meanwhile, the production of jaggery as well as khandsari, and molasses is also expected to increase. The production of khandsari as well as jaggery and molasses last season stood at 13.30 lakh quintal, 7.56 lakh quintal, and 22.50 lakh tonnes respectively. Mr Bobde said that they were confident to surpass last seasons figures.

However, 61 sugar mills in the state have completed crushing cane and closed down, while 67 mills were expected to continue crushing for a few more days.

Mr Bobde said that they expect a few mills in western-UP to continue crushing even till the first week of April.

Moreover, Mr Bobde said that the farmers this season were paid Rs 9068.41 crores by the millers for purchasing cane.

Along with this, he also said that even at the fag end of the crushing season, the millers were paying farmers an incentive or premium of Rs 50 to Rs 90/quintal over and above the SAP of Rs 165/quintal fixed by the state government.

Meanwhile, the state government expects that due to lucrative cane prices and timely payment by millers, the cane acreage is expected to enhance by 15 to 18% in the next season 2010-11 as compared to the current season.

However, the current season witnessed cane cultivation on 17.88 lakh hectares and the government estimates the cane acreage to grew to 20 lakh hectares.

In the meantime, the prices of sugar in parts of the country, especially Maharashtra, fell below Rs 3,000 a quintal (S-30 grade) on Monday.

The prices in the wholesale Vashi market fell to a four-and-a-half month low Rs 3,050-3,110 a quintal.

In Uttar Pradesh, the prices ranged around Rs 34 a kg in the wholesale market.

While the measures taken by the Centre in order to curb the rising prices are seen as a reason for the fall in the rates, a boycott of the daily auctions for sugar mills by traders in Mumbai also led to the fall.

According to Mr Prakash Naiknavare, Managing Director of the Maharashtra State Co-operative Sugar Factories Federation, "Traders in Maharashtra boycotted the auctions conducted by the cooperative mills from March 1. We have resolved the issue through talks today and from tomorrow, they will take part".

Sugar Prices Drop To Rs 30/kg Level- March 09, 2010

The prices of sugar in parts of the country, especially Maharashtra, fell below Rs 3,000 a quintal (S-30 grade) on Monday.

The prices in the wholesale Vashi market fell to a four-and-a-half month low Rs 3,050-3,110 a quintal.

In Uttar Pradesh, the prices ranged around Rs 34 a kg in the wholesale market.

While the measures taken by the Centre in order to curb the rising prices are seen as a reason for the fall in the rates, a boycott of the daily auctions for sugar mills by traders in Mumbai also led to the fall.

According to Mr Prakash Naiknavare, Managing Director of the Maharashtra State Co-operative Sugar Factories Federation, "Traders in Maharashtra boycotted the auctions conducted by the cooperative mills from March 1. We have resolved the issue through talks today and from tomorrow, they will take part".

Mr Naiknavare also said that the bidding at the daily auctions will start at Rs 3,250 a quintal ex-mill.

The Centre after being concerned over surging prices, last month brought in a weekly sub-sale quota within the monthly free sale quota fixed for the sugar mills. The quota fixes the amount of sugar a mill can sell in the open market.

Besides, the Centre also cut to 10 days from 15 days the stocks that large and industrial users can have at their disposal.

Moreover, the prices on the global market also witnessed a decline of over 20 per cent in February.

Mr Naiknavare also said that the comfort level for the Maharashtra mills was Rs 3,250 a quintal.

India Tea Exports Surged 41 Percent- March 08, 2010

The tea exports of India surged 41 per cent in January 2010 following the global crop shortage that accounted for higher demand for Indian teas abroad, an Indian Tea Association official said. As per the data released by Tea Board showed that the total exports in January stood at 17 million kg as against 12.02 million kg a year ago. According to S Patra, Joint Secretary, Indian Tea Association, this is a continuation of the situation prevailing for the last three months when the demands from various tea importing countries grew significantly due to huge production deficit facing by the other tea exporting countries like Kenya and Sri Lanka. Though the total exports of India in 2009 declined 5.7 per cent to 191.5 million kg, the trend reversed in December, when they surged 36.9 per cent to 22.24 million kg for the month, he said. Meanwhile, the Tea Board said that India's total tea production for January rose 25 per cent at 27.1 million kg as against 21.6 million kg a year earlier following the good post-monsoon rains in Southern India. The total production of tea in South India was up by 60.25 per cent at 18.4 million kg as compared to 11.4 million kg a year ago, a Tea Board official said. Moreover, he added the production in Northern India was down by 14 percent at 8.7 million kg, where the climate was not that good as compared to 10.12 million kg last year. The production of tea globally during 2009 declined to 1.84 billion kg as compared to 1.89 billion kg during 2008, the Tea Board data showed. While the total tea production of India during January-December was down marginally at 978.9 million kg as against 980.81 million kg a year earlier, while the production in Kenya and Sri Lanka fell more than 9 per cent during the same period, the data showed. Meanwhile, India exports CTC (crush-tear-curl) variety of tea mainly to Egypt as well as Pakistan and UK and the premium orthodox variety of tea to Iraq, Iran and Russia.

Rubber Production In India Keeps Uptrend- March 08, 2010

Production of natural rubber in India is keeping an uptrend of an average 4% with the cultivation base and the productivity rising.

This is especially in Kerala which accounts for 80% of India's total output.

India's total output was 8.65 lakh tonnes in 2008-09, marking a 4.74% growth from the previous year.

However, in 2008-09, rubber was cultivated in Kerala in 5.17 lakh hectares, higher by 5,430 hectares over the previous year.

The State produced 7.83 lakh tonnes of rubber during the year, marking a rise of 4.03%. The State has been maintaining the uptrend in productivity from 1,190 kg per hectare in 1998-99 to 1,514 kg per hectare in 2008-09.

On the other hand, the rise in domestic production also helped lessen the import of rubber into India.

Spot Rubber Improves On Short Covering- March 05, 2010

The physical prices of rubber strengthened further on Thursday. The market gained following fresh buying as well as short covering as it felt raw material shortage in the main marketing centres.

The sheet rubber surged from Rs 143 to Rs 143.50 a kg amidst dull volumes.

On the National Multi Commodity Exchange (NMCE), the rubber futures showed a mixed mood.

While on Tokyo Commodity Exchange (TOCOM), the March contract concluded at Rs 143.21 (143.68) followed by April at Rs 148.08 (148.32), May at Rs 151.38 (151.33) and June at Rs 153.76 (153.52) a kg for RSS 4. RSS 3 weakened at its March futures to ¥276 (¥278.9) (Rs 143.11), April to ¥278.5 (¥282), May to ¥280.1 (¥284.4), June to ¥281.7 (¥286.3), July to ¥283 (¥287.9) and August to ¥284.6 (¥289.7) a kg during the day session.

Moreover, the grade increased at its March futures to ¥278.4 (Rs 144.37) along with April to ¥280.3, May to ¥281.3, June to ¥283, July to ¥284.5 and August to ¥286.3 a kg during the night session. On Singapore Commodity Exchange (SICOM), RSS 3 closed at Rs 149.16 (149.14) a kg. The grade firmed up to Rs 150.41 (150.26) a kg at Bangkok.

The spot prices stood at (Rs/kg): RSS-4: 143.50 (143); RSS-5: 140.50 (140); ungraded: 139 (138.50); ISNR 20: 138.50 (138) and latex 60 per cent: 92 (91).

Centre To Curb Movement Of 20% Non-Urea Fertilisers- March 05, 2010

The distribution as well as movement controls of non-urea fertilisers would remain on up to 20 per cent of the production and import of these products, even though the government is set to decontrol the prices of non-urea fertilisers effective from April 1.

As per the written statement by Mr Srikant Kumar Jena, the Union Minister of State for Chemicals and Fertilisers, in Lok Sabha on Thursday, there would be a monitoring of the distribution as well as movement of non-urea fertilisers (both domestic and imported) even after their decontrol from the new fiscal.

Moreover, in order to ensure the adequate supplies in under-served areas, 20 per cent of the production/import of the said decontrolled fertilisers will be placed under the movement controls under the Essential Commodities Act, 1955.

While the rest 80 per cent can be freely sold by the industry anywhere at market prices "determined based on the demand-supply forces".

Further, Mr Jena's statement clarified that the proposed nutrient based subsidy (NBS) policy would be directly applicable only to 18 non-urea fertilisers: di-ammonium phosphate as well as mono ammonium phosphate, triple super phosphate, single super phosphate (SSP), muriate of potash, ammonium sulphate and 12 grades of complex fertilisers.

The subsidy in these 18 fertilisers would be given based on their respective nitrogen (N) as well as phosphate (P), potash (K) and sulphur (S) content.

Meanwhile, as per the recommendations of an Inter-Ministerial Committee, the unit subsidy on the four nutrients would be decided on an annual basis by the Department of Fertilisers

The committee consists of Secretary (Fertilisers) and representatives from the Department of Agriculture & Cooperation as well as Department of Agricultural Research and Education, Department of Expenditure and Planning Commission.

Moreover, any variant of the above fertilisers containing secondary and micro nutrients like calcium as well as zinc, boron or molybdenum "will attract a separate per tonne subsidy in order to encourage their application along with the primary nutrients".

Further, the government will fix the unit subsidy for 'N', 'P', 'K' and 'S' during 2010-11 "in such a manner that the farm gate prices of non-urea fertilisers are as far as possible near the current prices so that the farmers are not adversely affected".

Oppn Alleges Scam In Sugar Imports, Pawar Refutes Charge- March 04, 2010

A relent opposition kept the pressure on the government in the Rajya Sabha on increasing prices alleging scam in sugar imports.

The charge was rejected by Food and Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar.

Pawar was replying to a short duration discussion, on the rising prices.

He faced allegations by the united opposition, particularly BJP and Left, of a "great scam" in sugar.

He said that not a single kg of sugar was imported by the Government, amid din which forced adjournment of the House for the third time during the day on issues related to fuel or food prices.

Meanwhile, CPI(M) member Brinda Karat alleged that state agencies have played a "dubious" role by not importing sugar and leaving it to the private trade.

Sugar prices in the last one year have more than doubled in the retail market and are currently above Rs 43 a kg.

The hour-long reply by Pawar saw frequent interruptions and shouting of slogans by the opposition.

The opposition said that the minister was not addressing the concerns raised by them specifically with regard to sugar prices and the issue price of commodities distributed through PDS.

Moreover, Pawar claimed that prices of some of the essential commodities like pulses, flour, potato and onion have decreased.

He said that the government had raised the Minimum Support Price (MSP) for wheat and rice by over 70% in the last five years and some impact was unavoidable on inflation.

Spot Rubber Enhances On Covering Buys- March 04, 2010

The spot rubber gained on Wednesday. As per the sources, in the market, there were no quantity sellers and hence the prices strengthened due to covering purchases. The sheet rubber enhanced further to from Rs 142.75 to Rs 143 a kg amidst scattered transactions.

On the National Multi Commodity Exchange (NMCE), the rubber futures showed a better trend. The March contract strengthened marginally to Rs 143.98 (143.21) along with April to Rs 148.35 (147.83), May to Rs 151.11 (150.69) and June to Rs 153.64 (152.84) a kg for RSS 4.

Moreover, on Tokyo Commodity Exchange (TOCOM), the March futures for RSS 3 weakened to ¥278.9 (¥280) (Rs 143.99) followed by April to ¥282 (¥282.5), May to ¥284.4 (¥284.7) and June to ¥286.3 (¥287.1), July to ¥287.9 (¥288.6) a kg during the day session.

While on Singapore Commodity Exchange (SICOM), RSS 3 dipped further to Rs 149.14 (149.75) a kg. The grade (spot) were Rs 150.26 (151.04) a kg at Bangkok. Spot rates were (Rs/kg): RSS-4: 143 (142.75); RSS-5: 140 (139); ungraded: 138.50 (138); ISNR 20: 138 (137) and latex 60 per cent: 91 (91).

Coir Exports May Touch Rs 1,000 Cr By End Of 11th Plan- March 03, 2010

The exports of Coir are expected to touch Rs 1,000 crore by end of the Eleventh Plan, according to Mr V.S. Vijayaraghavan, Chairman, Coir Board.

He also added that the coir industry was priming itself for a quantum surge in growth.

The export of coir and allied products had touched Rs 623 crore until January 31 of this fiscal. This is expected to surge to Rs 750 crore by the turn of the fiscal, which would exceed the Rs 700 crore of target set by the Centre.

He said that the potential is equally good in the domestic market.

Meanwhile, the Coir Board has been appointed as the nodal agency by the Director-General for Supplies and Disposals (DGS&D) for the supply of coir and allied products to Central Government offices and public sector undertakings.

Meanwhile, the DGS&D had approved the rates submitted on a rate contract basis, which would obviate the need for tenders and enable the direct procurement of coir and allied products through agencies chosen by the Coir Board.

Moreover, Mr Vijayaraghavan also announced that the Coir Board has sanctioned the arrears under the market development assistance scheme.

Pepper Futures Down On Bear Pressure- March 03, 2010

Despite bullish reports and sentiments, the pepper futures yesterday declined sharply, on bearish activities by market operators.

The big operators have pulled down the market without any reasons and co-relation to the market fundamentals, market operators alleged.

According to them, March delivered MG 1 doubled checked pepper is available at Rs 12,700 a quintal at the exchange platform, while in the spot, MG 1 was sold at Rs 13,000 a quintal.

The selling pressures is reported to have emerged in Karnataka from the start of the week as the harvesting of the current crop has reached its peak in Chikmagalur as well as Sakleshpur areas.

Moreover, they alleged that the new pepper is being moved out from these regions at Rs 13,000 quintal to anywhere in India evading taxes. There were (SMS) sell calls in the morning while the buy back calls at noon from experts to book profits.

The March contract on the NCDEX declined by Rs 185 to close at Rs 12,671. While, the April and May by Rs 204 and Rs 187, respectively, to close at Rs 12,910 and Rs 13,181 a quintal. However, the total turnover surged 1,663 tonnes to 3,539 tonnes. The total open interest grew by 145 tonnes to 9,790 tonnes. The March open interest slipped by 32 tonnes while April and May shot up by 180 tonnes and four tonnes, respectively.

Less Demand To Slow Gems, Jewellery Export Growth - March 02, 2010

Slow demand recovery in the US and the Europe may hold back export growth of Indian gems and jewellery in the short term.

This was stated by a study conducted by the Export-Import Bank of India (EXIM)

The study describes India as one of the fastest growing jewellery markets in the world and the growth in this industry is expected to be boosted by that in jewellery exports to the US, Europe and demand in the domestic market.

However, the EXIM bank stated that the demand for this industry is expected to remain moderate in the near future.

This it said after analyzing the trends in the gems and jewellery sector.

The sluggish demand recovery in the US and Europe may relax the export growth prospects of gems and jewellery from India in the short term.

The growth prospects in economies of India, Middle East, Hong Kong and China are likely to help the sector regain its glitter.

Meanwhile, on growth prospects in emerging economies, the study stresses that "changing lifestyle and urbanization are also likely to encourage sales growth in the gems and jewellery industry.

India is the largest consumer of gold and also one of the largest diamond processors World.

More than 90% of diamonds in the world in terms of pieces, around 80% in terms of carats and around 55% in terms of volume are processed in India

India, the largest gold consumer in the world (over 700 tonnes in 2008), accounts for 24% of global consumption, majority of which goes into jewellery production.

Previously, it was said that the gold and jewellery industry managed to catch the attention of the Finance Minister in the Union Budget 2010-11.

But the Gem & Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC) felt that the announcement did not suggest much cheer since it did not contain much, which is specific to the industry.

The Union Budget kept the challenges faced by the industry in mind, including threat from the growing influence of highly competitive markets across the world.

Earlier, it was said that due to the global crisis, the Indian gems and jewellery industry has lost its shine over the last 18 months.

Around a year ago, the jewellery business was flourishing but the crisis has hit hard on it.

Maulin Shah of Veer Gems stated that he really did not expect that the situation will be that bad but unfortunately for everyone it was a bad situation.

Meanwhile, the Indian diamond processing industry was caught with another problem of rough stone shortage by 25-30 per cent, after struggling to overcome the weak sales in the last year

Many jewellery makers were planning to showcase innovative designs and cuts in one of the largest jewellery shows in Asia, which is scheduled to commence from March 5-9 in Hong Kong.

But the roughs stone shortage has limited their scope. There is a fear among the participants that their overall sales would be hit badly.

However, earlier, the exports of India's gem and jewellery during April-January surged 14.30 per cent on year at Rs 1.07 lakh crore, according to provisional data by Gems and Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC).

The exports of gem and jewellery in the same period, in dollar terms, surged only 7.42 per cent on year at $22.54 billion, the council said.

The council said tat the data does not include figures from Vishakhapatnam SEZ.

Meanwhile, GJEPC said that the exports of cut and polished diamonds have grown 18.46 per cent on year to Rs 65,693 crore during the period under review.

The gold jewellery exports from the domestic tariff area surged 0.49 per cent to Rs 7,958 crore, while the exports from the special economic zones grew by 11.28 per cent at Rs 28,513 crore, it said.

The total exports of gold jewellery surged by 8.73 per cent on year to stood at Rs 36,471 crore, the data showed.

On the other hand, the apex body set up by the Union ministry of commerce to monitor the jewellery business overseas, Gems & Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC), says it is planning to pull out of the diamond cutting and polishing business in China.