Cashew exports down 1.2 %

India's cashew exports fell 1.2 per cent to 108,120 tonnes in the year ended March 2010 from 109,522 tonnes during the year-ago period, according to the provisional estimates of Cashew Export Promotion Council of India today.

Export income fell 2.7 per cent to Rs 2,905 crore from Rs 2,988 crore during the year-ago period.

The average earning fell to Rs 268.76 a kg from Rs 272.86 a year ago, according to the Council data.

In March, the volume of export, meanwhile, was slightly higher at 9,191 tonnes from 8,898 tonnes a year ago.

The export income for March also rose slightly to Rs 245 crore from Rs 233 crore a year ago.

Raw cashew imports in April-March 2009-10 surged 24.2 per cent to 752,854 tonnes from 605,850 tonnes during the year-ago period, according to the Council data.

Import cost rose 15.38 per cent to Rs 3,037 crore from Rs 2,632 crore. The average cost of imported raw cashew, however, fell to Rs 40.34 a kg from Rs 43.45 a year ago.

According to trade estimates, the domestic cashew processing industry requires around 1.2 million tonnes of raw cashew a year to meet export and domestic demand. At present, domestic output meets less than 50 per cent of the requirement.

The quantity of cashew shell liquid rose to 9,748 tonnes in April-March from 9,099 tonnes, according to the Council Data.

The export earnings from cashew shell liquid, however, declined to Rs 24 crore from Rs 26 crore a year ago.

The fall in average export earning to Rs 24.74 a kg from Rs 28.64 kept the overall income low.