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Prices fall 5 rupees in the key wholesale markets of Mumbai and Kolhapur due to weak buying even as mills lowered their prices to trigger demand. Prices of the sweetener in the key spot markets Delhi and Muzaffarnagar were unchanged amid thin trade.

Futures contracts of raw sugar on the ICE were down as China decided to raise taxes on imports from major producers over the next three years. Benchmark July raw sugar contract on the ICE was down 0.6% at $16.29 cents a pound. China tax on imports beyond the first 1.95 million tonne per year will be raised to 95% from the current 50%, effective immediately. The rate fall to 90% after one year and to 85% after two years. The tax on the first 1.95 million tonne will remain at 15%.

The USDA has forecast world sugar inventories in 2017-18 to fall 600,000 tonne to a six-year low of 38.3 million tonne. Despite expectations of a record world sugar production in 2017-18, global sugar stocks are seen falling due to lower inventories in China and Mexico. The department has forecast world sugar output in 2017-18 to rise by 8.8 million tonne to a record 179.6 million tonne, amid expectations of recovery in production of the sweetener in India.

Sugarcane acreage in the country was at 4.19 million hectares as of last week, a shade lower than 4.23 million hectares a year ago. So far, cane acreage is lower on year in most states, but higher in Maharashtra, where the cane output is likely to rebound after a sharp drop last year. Last year, cane acreage in Maharashtra was at 650,000 ha, up 2.7% on year. Sugarcane output in the state had fallen to an eight-year low last season due to drought, while sugar output had dropped to around 4.2 million tonne. Traders expect sugar production in Maharashtra to improve to around 7 million tonne in the new crushing season starting October, taking India’s total sugar output to 24-25 million tonne, sharply higher than year 20 million tonne.