April 9, 2010

India reports higher wheat futures contract

The April wheat futures contract NWTJ0 on National Commodity and Derivatives Exchange (NCDEX) went up on Friday, April 9 by 0.63% at INR1,126.6 (US$ 25.4) per 100 kilogrammes at 2:52 p.m. as India's government purchased the grain from farmers.

"The movement will be in a range for a few days, government buying will keep the prices from falling but an upside is also not expected," said an analyst with a Delhi-based brokerage.

Food Corp of India on Wednesday (Apr 7) said wheat purchases since April 1 stood at 996,000 tonnes, compared with 817,000 tonnes a year ago while the wheat stocks on April 1 stood at 16.1 million tonnes against the target of 4 million tonnes. Analysts said an upside is also not expected as stocks in the government granaries are swelling..

India, the world's second-biggest wheat producer next to China, expects a strong harvest in 2010, with output likely to exceed demand for the fourth consecutive year. India is estimated to produce about 82 million tonnes of wheat in 2009-2010.