Signaling a small revival in the export fortunes, the cashew exports form the nation has recorded a marginal increase during May of the current fiscal. According to export figures provided by the Cashew Export Promotion Council, exports during May are 4% higher in volume and 6% higher in value when compared to the performance of the previous month. Traders are expecting the market to rebound in the coming months on the backdrop of a supply crunch. Higher inventory by the processors and exporters also point to a revival, sources said.
The market statistics also indicate marginal revival in the export fortunes after several months of despondency. The unit realization has also moved from Rs 265.68 per kg in April to Rs 269.87 in May 2009. However, exports during the first two months of the current fiscal (2009-10) are down in volume and value, when compared it the corresponding period of the last fiscal (2008-09).
Exports during the first two months of the current fiscal are down in volume by 15% and value by 6% when compared to the performance of the corresponding period of the last fiscal. The unit realization for the current fiscal (April-May) stands at Rs 265.70 as against Rs 229.88 of the last fiscal.
Cashew market is seen firming on lesser availability of cashew kernels in the global market due to restrictions on export by Kenya, Mozambique and the problems faced by the Vietnamese cashew exporters.Import of raw cashew has also recorded an increase in the current fiscal. Interestingly, the unit cost of importing raw cashew has taken a dip after several months During May, import of raw cashew stands at 60,550 tonne in May 2008. For the first two months of the current fiscal, the import of raw cashew is seen higher by almost 61% when compare to the corresponding period of the last fiscal.