Despite arrivals of commodities petering out at major marketplaces, prices have not shot up drastically due to relatively weak demand on the back of uncertainty clouding the economic prospects of various businesses.

Inflow of agri-commodities in the first two weeks of April dipped sharply due to delayed rabi harvest, labour shortage, lack of transport and reduced mandi operations, said a Crisil Research report.

Also, grains were held back by farmers and traders to be sold at a later date when mandi operations and logistics normalise, it was believed.

However, in the case of perishables such as fruits and vegetables, farmers are bearing the brunt of the crash in demand because of the lockdown. Exports of grapes and mangoes have been halted. Interestingly, the price of fruits are down 10 per cent despite an 85 per cent fall in arrivals.

However, middlemen are procuring fruits and vegetables from farmers at much lower prices given their limited bargaining power due to the perishable nature of the commodities.

Going forward, bumper crop output, lower industrial demand and limited exports will exert downward pressure on wheat prices. Decline in industrial and animal and poultry feed demand for coarse grains is estimated to have led to a decline in mandi prices.