Soyabean arrivals have commenced in the key-growing States of Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra and the trade is of the view that the crop will be marginally higher than last year. This is despite a drop in acreage during the kharif season following a delay in the Monsoon.

While arrivals of the new crop is seen exerting pressure on bean prices, trade sources said processors and soyameal exporters are yet to find buyers, who seem to have adopted a “wait and watch” policy in a bearish market.

“About 1.5 lakh bags of soyabean have arrived in Madhya Pradesh, while in Maharashtra it is around 70-80 lakh bags. All over India, total arrivals are around 2.5 lakh bags in the past few days,” said Rajesh Agarwal, spokesperson for the Soyabean Processors Association of India (SOPA).Prices of new bean are hovering around ₹3,000 a quintal in the Indore market. The beans with higher moisture content are trading around ₹2,700-2800, a little higher than the minimum support price level of ₹2,560.

Agarwal said the crop size this year is likely to expand by 5-10 per cent compared with last year. Soyabean was planted on 12.17 million hectares last year and the output, according to Government estimates, was 11.98 million tonnes. In the current season, soyabean has been planted on about 10.96 million hectares.

SOPA is currently in the process of estimating the current crop size and is likely to come out with the number in about a week’s time. Agarwal said the exporters’ order book is not looking good. “Crushing is poor and there are hardly any exports. Despite the decline in prices, the Indian soyameal is still expensive and buyers who are making need-based purchases have partially covered their requirements from the South American suppliers,” he said. Crushing is expected to pick up with the increase in arrivals post-festival season.

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