Wheat acreage surges 25% from last year; but weather remains a concern

Traders are confident that total acreage will be 10-15 per cent more than the previous years

The area under wheat jumped 25 per cent during the week ended December 9 compared to the same period last year. This comes as farmers brought more area under the crop in anticipation of better returns.

Record high prices and hope that markets will remain favourable for wheat in the next few months due to dwindling stocks in government granaries and with private traders boosted sentiment, traders said.

According to the latest data from the agriculture ministry, till Friday, wheat has been sown in around 25.57 million hectares. During the same period last year, it was 20.39 million hectares. In