Wheat prices soar, expected to remain high till new crop arrives

NEW DELHI: In the past one month, prices of wheat and flour have soared by 5 per cent and 4 per cent, respectively, and commodity watchers expect them to remain high till the new crop arrives, which is bad news for the consumers of the two essential commodities.

In the past one year, wheat prices have gone up by 15 per cent, while flour prices have increased by 23 per cent, and with the new crop expected only in April 2023, the prices are expected to remain high, market watchers said.

Owing to the Russia-Ukraine war, global demand for wheat has increased sharply while production has been low, which has led to the spike in prices of the commodity.

As of now, the government has 227 metric tonnes of wheat, which is just 22 tonnes more than the buffer stock norms of 205 metric tonnes. However, if sources are to be believed, the government does not have any plans to sell wheat in the open market or apply stock limit.

Sources also pointed out that the government is monitoring the situation and the inter-ministerial committee will review the prices of wheat this week.

Wheat price is at Rs 2,831 per quintal now, which is 5 per cent more than last month's price of Rs 2,693 per quintal. Similarly, flour price is currently at Rs 3,196 per quintal, 4 per cent more than last month's price of Rs 3,072 per quintal.

The current wheat price of Rs 2,831 per quintal is 15 per cent more than the year-ago price of Rs 2,431 per quintal. Also, the current flour price of Rs 3,196 per quintal is 23 per cent more than last year's price of Rs 2,597 per quintal, according to official data.