Skip to main content

Onion export jumps 56% in Apr-July, but India now importing







  • India's onion export rose by 56 per cent to 12.29 lakh tonnes in April-July this year, but the country has now gone in for import of the kitchen staple as retail prices have shot up to Rs 65-70 per kg because of tight supplies.

  • In value terms too, the onion export increased by 47.69 per cent to Rs 1,443.09 crore in the period under review, from Rs 977.84 crore a year ago, it said.

  • Last week, the government allowed state-owned agencies like MMTC to import onion from countries like Egypt and China to increase availability and cool retail prices that have skyrocketed to Rs 65-70 a kg level in many parts of the country.

  • According to data maintained by the Directorate General of Commercial Intelligence and Statistics (DGCIS), the country has exported 12.29 lakh tonnes of onion during April-July of 2017-18, up 56 per cent from 7.88 lakh tonnes in the year-ago period.

  • "Exports increased during April-July because of two reasons: firstly, there was no minimum export price (MEP) and second, the global prices remained much higher," the state- owned National Horticultural Research and Development Foundation (NHRDF) acting Director P K Gupta told PTI.

  • The exports helped farmers get better rates for their produce during the first quarter of the fiscal when local prices had fallen sharply. 

  • However, with old stocks getting depleted and rise in local prices, the exports have slowed, he said.

  • According to the DGIS data, exporters realised Rs 11,737 per tonne of onion during April-July of this fiscal.

  • MEP is the minimum rate below which export is not allowed. Onion MEP was scrapped in December 2015.

  • Despite demand from Consumer Affairs Minister Ram Vilas Paswan, the MEP was not imposed in August when retail onion prices had started showing an upward trend.

  • "Now, retail onion prices have come under pressure because the old crop is getting exhausted. Also, new kharif crop arrival is less," Gupta said.

  • For instance, in the national capital, the average retail price of onion was ruling at Rs 15 per kg in April and gradually rose to Rs 30-35 in July and by October-end, the rate crossed Rs 50, as per the ministry data.

  • However, local vendors are selling at Rs 65-70 per kg depending on the quality and locality in Delhi. 

  • A similar rise in prices of onion was witnessed in other cities also.To boost local supply, the government facilitated import of onion through private traders, who have purchased 11,400 tonnes from the overseas market so far.

  • The new kharif crop is likely to be lower by 10 per cent as area sown is less by 30 per cent. 

  • The production assessment will be known once the harvesting completes, a senior consumer affairs ministry official said.

  • It may be noted that 40 per cent of the country's total onion crop is produced in the kharif season, and the rest during the rabi season. The kharif crop, however, cannot be stored.

  • Maharashtra, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar and Gujarat are major onion-producing states.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Export Pre Shipment and Post Shipment Finance in International Trade

Pre Shipment Finance is issued by a financial institution when the seller want the payment of the goods before shipment. The main objectives behind preshipment finance or pre export finance is to enable exporter to: Procure raw materials. Carry out manufacturing process. Provide a secure warehouse for goods and raw materials. Process and pack the goods. Ship the goods to the buyers. Meet other financial cost of the business. Types of Pre Shipment Finance Packing Credit Advance against Cheques/Draft etc. representing Advance Payments. Preshipment finance is extended in the following forms : Packing Credit in Indian Rupee Packing Credit in Foreign Currency (PCFC) Requirment for Getting Packing Credit This facility is provided to an exporter who satisfies the following criteria A ten digit importerexporter code number allotted by DGFT. Exporter should not be in the caution list of RBI. If the goods to be exported are not under OGL (Open General Licence), the expo...

7 and a Half Very Simple Things You Can Do To Save EXPORT POST SHIPMENT FINANCE

Introduction Post Shipment Finance is a kind of loan provided by a financial institution to an exporter or seller against a shipment that has already been made. This type of export finance is granted from the date of extending the credit after shipment of the goods to the realization date of the exporter proceeds. Exporters don’t wait for the importer to deposit the funds. Basic Features The features of Post-shipment finance are: 1) Purpose of Finance : Post-shipment finance is meant to finance export sales receivable after the date of shipment of goods to the date of realization of exports proceeds. In cases of deemed exports, it is extended to finance receivable against supplies made to designated agencies. 2) Basis of Finance : Post-shipment finances is provided against evidence of shipment of goods or supplies made to the importer or seller or any other designated agency. 3) Types of Finance : Post-shipment finance can be secured or unsecured. Since the finance...

QUOTAS? Is Essential For Your Success. Read This To Find Out Why

Quotas are a quantity control on imported goods.  Generally, they are specific provisions limiting the amount of foreign products imported in order to protect local firms and to conserve foreign currency.  Quotas can be used for export control as well. An export quota is sometimes required by national planning to preserve scarce resources.  From a policy standpoint, a quota is not as desirable as a tariff since a quota generates no revenues for a country.  Two kinds of voluntary quotas can be legally distinguished: VER (voluntary export restraint) and OMA (orderly marketing agreement).  Whereas an OMA involves a negotiation between two governments to specify export management rules, the monitoring of trade volumes, and consultation rights, a VER is a direct agreement between an importing nation's government and a foreign exporting industry (i.e., a quota with industry participation).  Both enable the importing country to circumvent the GAT...