Good harvest may trim castor prices

AHMEDABAD: Castor prices are expected to see a correction in the coming days with harvesting picking up across Gujarat, a big producer having a share of 86% of production. Sluggish demand from export and domestic markets , especially from paint, pharma- ceutical and textile industries, is another reason.

“Castor arrivals have just begun and prices are fluctuating. There is no major purchase being done by traders and companies. Contracts for castor oil are being signed for $1,200 a tonne compared to $2,700 a tonne in the previous year,” Jayant Agro-Organics chairman Vithal Udeshi said. The company has tied up with Mitsui of Japan to manufacture high value-added products.

The traders pointed out that the carry-over stock of castor seed was close to 7-8 lakh bag (each bag weighs 100 kg) which could put pressure on prices. “Daily, 12,000 to 13,000 bags are coming to Gujarat mandis.

We expect the prices to be bearish till March-end ,” said Rajkot Commodity Exchange president Raju Pobaru.February contracts fell by Rs 26 to Rs 3,599 a quintal on the National Commodity and Derivatives Exchange with an open interest of 8,010 lots, while March contracts dropped Rs 10 to Rs 3,576 a quintal with an open interest of 5,080 lots.