Pepper continues to move up

The spot pepper continued to stay firmer on tight supply amid good buying interest. Direct buying from the primary markets by Tamil Nadu based inter-state dealers is claimed to have squeezed the supply to the terminal market, trade sources told Business Line . Only 3.5 tonnes from the high ranges arrived and that were traded at ₹710 a kg. Spot prices moved up further by ₹200 a quintal to close at ₹69,300 (ungarbled) and ₹72,300 (garbled) a quintal. July, August and September contracts on the IPSTA remained steady at ₹72,000, ₹71,000 and ₹69,000 a quintal. Indian export prices were at 10,950 a tonne c&f for Europe and $11,200 a tonne c&f for US.