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Cashew units fail to cash-in on record price

KOLLAM: While the international price of cashew kernel touched an all time high of $3.65 a pound (450 gm), the cashew industry here could not benefit much from it. This was mainly because the record price proved to be only a week-long phenomenon witnessed from June 22.

Soon afterwards, prices began falling and on July 12 it dropped by 20 per cent to $3.15 a pound. The earlier international record price for cashew kernels was $3.20 a pound registered in 2004.

Cashew processors here said that the record kernel price for cashew this time was offset by a corresponding rise in raw cashew price. The current raw cashew season is in the Ivory Coast. There, the price of raw cashew soared during June-end and July from $890 a tonne to $1,100 a tonne. In fact, the record price of kernels brought losses to many processors though few made handsome profits. Only those processors who had stock of raw cashew benefited. By the time the deals were finalised, prices began falling. Exporter agents closely watching the situation feel that it is unlikely that prices will climb again. The shortfall in exports from Vietnam had led to shortage of physical stock of kernels in the international market.

The shortage led to an unexpected rise in demand for kernels from India. Those who had sufficient stock of kernels and raw cashew benefited.

Vietnam is a main competitor to India.

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