October 4, 2011

India's corn exports up

India's 2011 corn exports surged to around 2.8 million tonnes as of September 30 from 0.8 million tonnes in the previous year, a senior industry official said Monday (Oct 3).

The official said that higher crop production was the main reason for the jump in exports.

India also benefited from low global stockpile. It exports the animal feed mainly to Vietnam, Bangladesh and Malaysia.

Corn output for 2010-11 is estimated to have risen 27% to 21.28 million tonnes.

The official added that corn production during 2011-12 should be around the same at 21.5 million tonnes.

He said good monsoon rainfall this year will likely help corn output, although the distribution of rain had been "skewed." A late pickup in rainfall hasn't caused any major crop damage, he said.

Monsoon rainfall was 1% above normal during the June-September season.

He said that it's too early to say whether corn exports this year will be as good as in 2010-11 noting that corn prices had fallen 23% over the last one month on the Chicago Board of Trade.

He said Indian exports could fall if prices continued to slide internationally.

Around 70% of India's corn is grown in summer when the monsoon rain arrives in May-June, while the remaining is produced in winter.