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G.K. Nair

Kochi , June 2

CARDAMOM prices ruled steady on good demand in the week to Thursday at the auctions held in Kerala and Tamil Nadu.

Arrivals were said to be thin and as a result, most of the auctioneers plan to suspend auctions till mid-July. At the Kumily auction by Cardamom Marketing and Processing Company (CPMC) on Wednesday, arrivals stood at 25 tonnes of which 22 tonnes were sold and the average price was Rs 285.88 a kg.

The variety 8mm bold fetched Rs 440-450 a kg, while 7mm was sold at Rs 320-350 a kg. Current bulk was sold at Rs 275-280. Export buying had declined for want of good quality bold capsules.

According to Mr P.C. Punnoose, General Manager, CPMC, overseas buyers especially in Saudi Arabia demand for green bold capsules of 7mm and above which is not available now. Though there has been a drop in demand for Indian cardamom in West Asian countries, there is still a good market in selected markets.

Trading sources in Bodinayakannur said stockists were keeping the market steady. The 8mm and 7mm bold fetch Rs 430-450 and Rs 320-350 a kg, respectively depending on the colour. The prices of graded varieties as on May 28 were: AGEB Rs 380-390, AGB Rs 300-310, AGS Rs 290-300 and AGS1 Rs 280-290 a kg.

The arrivals during the season stood at 4,934 tonnes, of which 4,593 tonnes were sold. During the corresponding period last year, the total arrivals stood at 5,386 tonnes and the sales at 4,991 tonnes. The weighted average price during the current season was Rs 303.03 compared with Rs 362.23 last season.

CPMC is understood to have decided to hold the last auction of the season on June 8, while the Cardamom Marketing Corporation (CMC) on June 11. The auctioneers at Bodinayakannur (except the Cardamom Planters Association (CPA) which conducted auction on May 30), Nedumkandam and Pulianmala have not been holding auctions in the past few weeks.

However, Mr S. Kannan, Director-Marketing, Spices Board, told Business Line that the board "has not permitted anybody to stop the auctions and it is mandatory for the auctioneers to conduct the auctions throughout the year. We have not received any request from any of them so far for suspending the auction".

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