EDIBLE OIL PRODUCERS TO CUT PRICES BY 15PC
In a major relief for consumers, edible oil producers are looking to cut their product prices by up to 15 percent effective immediately to pass on the similar fall in global markets and proportionate decline in seed prices locally. Indian edible oil (both branded and unbranded) producers, however, plan to offer discounts on the maximum retail price (MRP) on the consumer packs produced earlier. Lose retailers, too, would pass on the price fall in the international and domestic markets to consumers.
Meanwhile, a cut on the MRP would depend on the sustainability of the present price level for long. The benchmark crude palm oil (CPO) price declined by 18 percent so far this calendar year to trade currently at MYR (Malaysian ringgit) 2669 a tone on bumper output globally.
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GOLD TAKES BACK SOME LOST GROUND
Gold futures settled at a 2 1/2 week low Wednesday, down a third straight session, as the dollar firmed and stocks traded broadly higher.
But prices for the precious metal moved a bit higher in electronic trading after Trump administration unveiled some details of a broad tax plan.
June gold GCM7, +0.25 percent fell $3, or 0.2 percent, to settle at $1,264.20 an ounce, the lowest finish for a most-active contract since April 10. Prices settled for the session just as Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and White House economic adviser Gary Cohn started to outline the plan.
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UNUSUAL MINING METHOD FOR COAL EXTRACTION
A controversial underground coalmine that will threaten the water supply of 71 landowners in NSW’s southern highlands will net the state government just $120 million over two decades.
A multinational steelmaker, Korea-based Posco, is seeking approval for an underground coalmine near Berrima in the southern highlands of New South Wales, part of Sydney’s drinking-water catchment. The Hume Coal project would extract 3.5m tons of coal each year for 19 years, using an unusual mining method known as “pine feather” to extract 35 percent of the total deposit.
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EUROPEAN VEGOIL PRICES CLIMB
Palm oil prices on Europe’s vegetable oil market were higher on Wednesday boosted by a rebound in Malaysian futures and gains in CBOT soybean oil.
Crude palm oil offers were raised by $7.50 to $20 a ton, cif Rotterdam, with expectations of slower than forecast output growth aiding the recovery in Malaysia.
Dealers said gains, however, may prove short-lived with production recovering after an El Nino-linked decline and demand remaining subdued. CBOT soyoil rose with the most active contract up 1.1 percent at 32.20 cents per lb.
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BRAZIL’S CENTER-SOUTH SUGAR EXPORTS TO DECLINE
Brazil’s center-south cane belt is expected to reduce its sugar exports in the 2017-18 season by 400,000 tons, after projections of smaller cane crushing in the new crop.
Center-south exports during the 2016-17 season, which ended in March, totaled 28.28 million tons. The group released its first estimates for the new cane crop on Wednesday.
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IVORY COAST COCOA EXPORTS UP 2.5PC
Ivory Coast exported 219,265 tons of semi-finished cocoa products by the end of March from the start of the season on Oct 1, up 2.5 percent from the same period a year earlier.
The cocoa season in the world’s top producer runs from October to September. There was no breakdown for other cocoa derivatives.
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TEA PRODUCTION DIPS
Tea production has dropped by a quarter to 705.2 million kilograms in the nine months to March 2017. This is compared to 936.6 million kilograms that was produced in a similar period last year.
Kenya Tea Development Agency (KTDA) has attributed the drop to the prolonged drought that has affected various tea-producing areas in the country, with the worst-hit counties being Kirinyaga, Nyeri and Embu.
February this year recorded the worst production levels, with green leaf delivered by farmers to factories managed by KTDA dropping by 52 percent to 54.3 million kilograms. This is compared to 114 million kilograms produced in February 2016.
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US MILK PRODUCTION SHOWS SIGN OF RECOVERING
Milk production on US dairy farms in March showed signs of recovery from harsh winter weather that took a toll on cows in February, although the Pacific Northwest and California were still in negative territory for year-over-year production.
Six of the 23 major milk-production states showed production losses in March, compared to 14 in February. Nationwide, milk production was up 1.7 percent year-over-year in March, after being down 1.3 percent in February.
Total production in March nationwide was 18.7 billion pounds, up almost 300 million pounds from March 2016 on 59,000 additional cows and a 21-pound increase per cow.