India’s sugar export expected to normalise in coming days: ISMA

NEW DELHI: India’s sugar export is expected to normalise in the coming days amid relaxation in the COVID-19

lockdown rules, industry body ISMA said on Monday.

The government has allowed export of 6 million tonne of sugar under maximum admissible export quota (MAEQ) during the 2019-20 marketing year (October-september) to liquidate surplus sugar in the global markets.

India has so far signed orders for shipment of 4.2 mil

lion tonnes for the 2019-20 marketing year. Quoting market sources, Indian Sugar Mills Association (ISMA) said that contracts for export of 4.2 million tonnes of sugar have been made till the beginning of May.

As per reports available from mills and ports, about 3.6 million tonnes of sugar has been moved/dispatched from the mills for export.

“Contracts for export of sugar are being signed for various destinations, with major quantities being signed for exports to Indonesia and Iran.

Shipments are also happening and are expected to normalise in the days to come,” ISMA said in a statement. In February, ISMA had said that India’s sugar export may cross 5 million tonnes in the current marketing year on higher demand.

The country had exported 3.8 million tonnes during the 2018-19 marketing year.

On domestic sugar production, ISMA said it has reached 26.46 million tonnes till May 15 of the 2019-20 marketing year, much lower than 32.61 million tonnes produced till the yearago period. Production in Uttar

Pradesh, the country’s largest producer, has touched a new record of 12.22 million tonne till May 15 of the current marketing year, higher than 11.68 million tonne in the year-ago.

ISMA said mills are still operational in central and western parts of Uttar Pradesh, while some have closed crushing operations in eastern parts of the state. Most factories are expected to close by the end of this month, while few may continue till the first week of June.

The crushing season has got extended in Uttar Pradesh as most gur/khandsari units have shut operations prematurely due to the COVID-19 lockdown. Due to this, a significant quantity of cane has been diverted to mills.

Almost 80 per cent of the gur/khandsari units in the state are primarily located in western and central Uttar Pradesh. Production in Maharashtra - the second largest producer of the sweetener - has dropped to 6.08 million tonnes so far this year, as against 10.71 million tonne in the year ago period.