Weekly: Syria Crisis May Increase Jeera Export Demand

MUMBAI (Commoditiescontrol) - Spot Jeera prices ruled mostly steady during the week ended April 13 on sluggish buying against rising arrivals.

However, ongoing crisis in Syria may impact jeera prices. Syria is India's tough competitor in the international market in terms of exports. Prices may see a jump ahead as the Syria crisis may shift export demand towards India. But how severe the crisis in Syria will be known in the coming days.

Meanwhile, in a televised address to the nation in the early hours of Saturday morning, US President Donald Trump announced that US, UK and France have launched an airstrike in Syria in retaliation to the alleged chemical attack on a rebel town by the regime of Bashar Al Assad.

A trader from Unjha said that trade activites have badly affected due to ongoing cash crunch. Moreover, farmers are also not accepting cheques owing to difficulties in receiving cash through banks. Traders may go on an indefinite strike if situation doesn't improve in the near-term, he added.

Recent rainfall may cause moisture in the spice and may reduce the colour, which can lead to weakness in prices, he said further.

Meanwhile arrivals have started at major market yards in Rajasthan in full swing. As per local traders, pace of arrival may increase in coming days but uptrend on futures trading coupled with stockists buying at domestic market are likely to support jeera prices.

Traders also said that now trade activities are limited at market yards amid uncertainties over future trend as export demand for jeera may see a short-term decline due to cancellation of treaty between Vietnam and China relating to import from third countries. It should be noted that China is the biggest buyer of Indian jeera.

Before cancellation of treaty, there was very less duty on products exported via Vietnam. But rise in smuggling of Indian jeera through Vietnam boarder in China forced Beijing to ban import from third countries' products via Vietnam.

During the week (April 6- April 13), Jeera May contract on NCDEX rose 1.62 percent or Rs 250/100/kg with a fall in volume by 40.38 percent while open interest grew by 47.57 percent.