Sugar mills produced 10.33 million tonnes (mt) till December 31, which is 26 per cent higher than the 8.2 mt produced during the corresponding period of the previous season, a release from the Indian Sugar Mills’ Association said on Wednesday.

The sugar year starts in October and runs till September of the next year.

Cane crushing data

Sugarcane crushing is on in 485 mills, of which 180 are in Maharashtra and 116 in Uttar Pradesh.

During the same period last year, only 441 mills were operational. Maharashtra’s mills have so far produced 3.8 mt of sugar, while those in UP accounted for 3.33 mt, the release said.

Sixty-two Karnataka mills reported 1.62 mt output compared to 1.54 mt produced by 56 mills last season.

Prices edge up

Meanwhile, sugar prices that had fallen in the last couple of months are seeing an improvement. “According to a Ministry of Consumer Affairs report, wholesale prices have improved in some parts of North and West India by ₹30-100 per quintal. Sugar sale is also witnessing a slight improvement in the last few days because of buying interest shown bytraders,” ISMA said.

Balance sheet

With an opening balance of 3.88 mt as on October 1, and an estimated production of 25.1 mt and 0.2 mt of white sugar from imported raw, the total availability in the country during the current season is seen at 29.18 mt.

Against this, considering a demand growth of around 2 per cent, consumption during the season is estimated at 25 mt and thus, the stock at the end of the season is projected to be about 4.18 mt.

The sugar industry body is expected to release its second advance estimates in the third week of this month.

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