Prices of small cardamom continued to slip on slack demand last week at auctions held in Kerala and Tamil Nadu.

Upcountry dealers have slowed down buying as they are reportedly liquidating the stocks held by them.

Meanwhile, several growing regions in Kerala received moderate rainfall for two days last week and this phenomenon has created a bearish sentiment. Besides, cloudy weather conditions are prevailing in many cardamom growing tracts in Idukki district, strengthening the anticipation, market sources said.

Many have slowed down purchases on the assumption that there would be an early and next crop in the next season. Prices fell to below ₹786 a kg at an auction after the rains last week, PC Punnoose, General Manager, CPMC, told BusinessLine. However, except for this auction, the individual auction average vacillated between ₹800 and ₹880 a kg.

Decline in the quality of the capsules is also attributed to the drop in prices, some in the trade said. The harvesting has reached its fag end with only around 10 per cent left for picking, trade sources said. Stockists/dealers who had bought good volume of fresh cardamom are reportedly selling out. As a result, upcountry demand has slowed down.

Exporters have also slowed down. They bought somewhere between 30 and 40 tonnes of cardamom.

The downward trend was visible at Cardamom Planters’ Association main auction today in Bodinayakannur where the average price was at ₹785 a kg. Total arrivals stood at 34 tonnes and of this around 32 tonnes of cardamom were traded.

Total arrivals during the season up to February 28 stood at 14,406 tonnes against 15,634 tonnes during the same period last year. The sales were at 14,072 tonnes and 15,151 tonnes respectively.

The individual auction average as on February 28 was at around ₹845 a kg and on the corresponding date last year was at around ₹683. Prices of graded varieties (₹/kg): 8mm bold green 1,100-1,150; 7-8mm 850-950 ; 6-7mm 750-800; below 6 mm: 700-750.

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