New Delhi (PTI): India's soyameal exports have declined more than half last month on account of sluggish demand in export destinations, an industry body said on Tuesday.
"The shipment in June 2009 was 1,00,833 tonnes, compared with 2,41,518 tonnes in the corresponding month last year," Indore-based Soybean Processors Association (SOPA) said in a statement.
Commenting on the decline, SOPA Coordinator Rajesh Agarwal said lower crushing due to high domestic soyabean prices and poor overseas demand contributed to the slump.
Trade sources said soyabean prices have increased to about Rs 25,000 a tonne from about Rs 23,000 a tonne in April.
Exporters have contracted soyameal at Rs 23,500 a tonne in June from overseas buyers, they added.
Mr. Agarwal said many importing countries have already bought their soyameal requirement in advance when prices were low.
The soyameal from the new crop would come only in October, if monsoon remains normal, a trader said.
According to the SOPA statement, soyameal export was 2,73,883 tonnes in the first quarter of the current fiscal (April-June) as against 10,98,313 tonnes in the year-ago period, a steep fall of nearly 75 per cent.
The shipment of soyameal was 28.55 lakh tonnes till June in 2008-09 season (October-September) as compared to 43.22 lakh tonnes during the corresponding period last year.
The data compiled by SOPA, however, do not include exports to Pakistan, Nepal and Bangladesh by road.
Source : The Hindu