Wheat Sales Under OMSS End in the Open Market
08-Mar-2025 10:22 AM
Wheat Sales Under OMSS End in the Open Market
★ The news of the end of wheat sales under the Open Market Sale Scheme (OMSS) was already reported yesterday. By yesterday evening, no new tenders were uploaded, and now, the government has decided not to issue any new tenders.
★ The Food Corporation of India (FCI) has sold 29.7 million tons of wheat out of the 30 million tons offered, compared to around 10 million tons sold in the 2023-24 financial year.
★ The auction started on December 4, 2024, with an initial offer of 1 million tons, later increased to 5 million tons.
★ The purchase limit for processors was raised from 100 tons to 400 tons, but traders were not allowed to participate.
★ In the final auction on March 5, 2025, bid prices increased by Rs. 10-150 per quintal in Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, West Bengal, Assam, and Haryana. A rise of Rs. 10-58 per quintal was also observed in Tamil Nadu, Telangana, and Kerala.
★ The final bid prices in wheat-producing states ranged from Rs. 2,540 to Rs. 3,009 per quintal.
★ Madhya Pradesh had the lowest bid at Rs. 2,540 per quintal, while Uttarakhand had the highest at Rs. 3,009 per quintal.
★ The highest bid was recorded in Jammu & Kashmir at Rs. 3,275 per quintal.
★ In Haryana, the bid price dropped by Rs. 570 per quintal in a week, settling at Rs. 2,880 per quintal. In Punjab, it fell by Rs. 50 (Rs. 2,850 per quintal) and in Bihar by Rs. 15 (Rs. 2,953 per quintal).
★ Between the first and last auction rounds, wheat prices fell by Rs. 170 per quintal, helping control inflation to some extent.
★ The average selling price in the first auction was Rs. 2,885 per quintal, which dropped to Rs. 2,712 per quintal in the final auction.
★ Wheat prices in producing states are higher than the Minimum Support Price (MSP) of Rs. 2,425 per quintal, which may encourage private traders to increase their purchases.
★ Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan have announced bonuses above MSP, which the government hopes will help procure more wheat.
★ The government has set a target to buy 31 million tons of wheat this year, compared to 26.61 million tons purchased last year, which was short of the targeted 37.3 million tons.
★ Since the record procurement of 43.34 million tons in 2021-22, the government has failed to meet its purchase targets for the last three years.
★ The government has ended wheat sales under OMSS for this year, but prices remain high. The procurement of new crops will be a major challenge, as private traders are expected to remain active in the market.