Tuvar dal prices will remain high due to low stocks and sluggish kharif sowing

- Low rains impact sowing in Karnataka and Maharashtra: Supply expected to improve next month due to imports

Tu ver dal prices are expected to remain high in the next two months due to low domestic stocks and sluggish kharif sowing, traders said. According to the Department of Consumer Affairs, the retail price of Tuvar is Rs. 140/kg, which represents an increase of 27 percent since the beginning of January. A variety of beans are expected to be imported from the African countries of Malawi and Mozambique next month. Along with this, Kharif sowing progress in Maharashtra and Karnataka will be crucial for future price movements, traders said.

Retail inflation in tuwer or arhar was 27.5% in June, 2023, compared to 10.9% in January, thus overall inflation in the pulses and produce category rose to double-digit levels of 10.9% last month for the first time since last year.

Tuwer sowing is set to pick up in the next two weeks, currently well below last year's levels. According to the Ministry of Agriculture, sowing has decreased by 38 percent year-on-year at 1.7 million hectares so far.

Monsoon rains in Maharashtra and Karnataka, which contribute about 65% of the country's turpentine production, have been deficient by 20% and 25%, respectively, against the benchmark-long-term average.

'On the import front, recent rains in Malawi and Mozambique may result in higher moisture content for early harvest crops. Rai said shipments from Malawi and Mozambique are expected to start from late July to August for Indian ports.

The Ministry of Agriculture has projected a marginal increase in tuwer production for the 2022-23 crop year (July-June) at 4.35 MT compared to 4.32 MT in the previous crop year. It accounts for about 16% of the country's pulses production of 27.75 million tonnes in 2022-23.

However, trade sources have pegged Tuwer production for the year at around 3.5 million tonnes as unseasonal rains in October adversely affected the standing crop in the major producing state of Maharashtra.

The government had in May imposed a limit on stocks of tuwer and urad dal to curb hoarding and speculation amid rising prices. Stock limits apply to a range of entities such as wholesalers to retailers, millers and importers. This order will be applicable till October 31. The Department of Consumer Affairs is closely monitoring the stock status of Tuvar and Udd through the Stock Disclosure Portal which is reviewed on a weekly basis with the State Governments.

Under the bilateral agreement signed in 2021, India has committed to import 0.25 million tonnes of urad and 0.1 million tonnes of tuwer annually from Myanmar between 2021-22 and 2025-26. In the same year, India signed an MoU with Malawi for the annual import of 0.05 million tonnes of Tuwer till 2025.