Higher arrivals and weak spot demand pulled down castorseed on the futures and spot markets. Though rising new crop arrivals and higher output estimates are putting pressure on the market, demand is likely to prevent any further fall in prices, said Mr Haribhai Patel, Senior Member, Rajkot Commodity Exchange (RCX).
Its March contract decreased by Rs 21 to Rs 3,621 a quintal on the RCX, while June was down Rs 44 to Rs 3,680. Spot castorseed declined by Rs 37.50 to Rs 3,652.50 a quintal on the exchange.
On the National Commodity and Derivatives Exchange the March contract was down Rs 19 to Rs 3,820 a quintal with an open interest of 13,120 lots while April decreased by Rs 22 to Rs 3,721 with an open interest of 6,750 lots.
About 55,000-60,000 bags of castorseeds arrived in Gujarat and quoted at Rs 725-735 for 20 kg, including around 4,900-5,000 in Saurashtra that quoted at Rs 690-731.
The Central Government's second advanced estimate for castorseed production is at around 2.34 million tonnes, against the targeted 1.39 million tonnes.