Indian soyameal exporters are bullish having struck deals to export 50,000 tonnes of soyameal from the new soyabean crop, trade officials said on Monday. They said contracts finalised this year were at a premium over Chicago prices, not at the usual flat rates, and exports could rise from the year ago figure due to a larger crop.
"This year the market is a bit bullish because of tightness in global supplies and there is a likelihood of early buying and restrained selling," said Rajesh Agrawal, spokesman of the Indore-based Soybean Processors' Association of India.
Indore, in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh, is India's soyabean trade hub. "Deals were finalised on the basis of a premium of $15 over December Chicago prices for shipment between mid-November and mid-December," said Davish Jain, chairman of the Central Organisation of Oil Industry and Trade, of the latest activity. "More deals should take place in the later half of August and September when the size of the soyabean crop will emerge," said Jain, also a leading soyameal exporter.
India is expecting to harvest a soyabean crop bigger than last season's 7.5 million tonnes, but exports in the new season beginning November could fall because of higher domestic demand.
Indian traders said soyabean sowing was almost complete. The harvest is expected to start from late September. Agrawal said it was too early to estimate the size of the new soyabean crop but according to government estimates the area under the crop this year was slightly up from a year ago and weather conditions were favourable.
India's soyameal exports from last season's crop are likely to drop to 3.6-3.7 million tonnes, against more than 4 million tonnes the year before, Agrawal said.