New Delhi. Holi will be celebrated in the first week of next month, and sugar demand is expected to pick up in the coming days. Prior to this, the market remained largely calm during the week of February 14th to 20th, with prices either stable or fluctuating slightly amid limited trading.

During the week under review, mill delivery prices of sugar remained unchanged in Punjab, Madhya Pradesh, and Bihar, but increased by ₹10 per quintal in eastern Uttar Pradesh and ₹30 per quintal in western Uttar Pradesh. Meanwhile, mill delivery prices in Gujarat fell by ₹30-35 to ₹3761/₹3881 per quintal.

The spot market conditions remained similar. In Delhi, prices remained stable at ₹4320/₹4450 per quintal, while in Indore, prices improved by ₹20 to ₹4100/₹4200 per quintal. Prices remained stable in Raipur and Kolkata.

There was no change in Mumbai (Vashi), and the Naka Port Delivery price remained at the previous level of ₹3800/₹4000 per quintal. However, sugar tender prices increased in Maharashtra and Karnataka. In Maharashtra, tender prices improved by ₹30 to ₹3690/₹3860 per quintal, and in Karnataka, they increased by ₹60 to ₹3650/₹3810 per quintal.

A free sale quota of 2.25 million tonnes of sugar has been issued for February, which is sufficient to meet domestic demand. Millers are facing difficulties in selling their stocks. Now, their hopes are pinned on Holi demand. It was expected that the increase in export quota by 5 lakh tonnes would have a positive psychological impact on the sugar market but no such impact is being seen so far.