News Capsule: Sugar Consumption Likely to Decline in April Due to Cool Weather and LPG Shortage
08-Apr-2026 11:02 AM
News Capsule: Sugar Consumption Likely to Decline in April Due to Cool Weather and LPG Shortage
★ Due to cooler weather and shortage of LPG cylinders, sugar consumption in the country is expected to decline by around 200,000 tonnes in April.
★ According to the industry, between October and February of the 2025–26 season, mills had sold about 60,000 tonnes more sugar than the allocated quota. However, demand has slowed since then. The government released a sugar sales quota of 2.25 million tonnes for March and 2.3 million tonnes for April, which is 0.05 million tonnes lower for each month compared to last year.
★ For the entire 2025–26 season, total sugar consumption is estimated to decline to about 27.7 million tonnes, compared to 28.1 million tonnes in the previous season.
★ On the production front, gross sugar production in the current season is estimated at 32–32.5 million tonnes, lower than the initial estimate of 33 million tonnes. After diverting around 3.5 million tonnes of sugar for ethanol, net production is expected to be around 28.5–29 million tonnes.
★ Exports of 1.5 million tonnes have been permitted, but considering global market conditions, achieving the full export target may be challenging.
★ After achieving the E20 blending target, the government is considering options such as increasing the blending percentage further or promoting flex-fuel vehicles.
★ Due to the expected decline in consumption, the closing stock of sugar in the country may increase, which could provide greater flexibility to boost ethanol production in the future.