Wheat prices climb amid delay in open-market sales by the Centre

With wheat prices scaling new highs since the start of this month, all eyes are now on the open market sales of grains by the Centre.

Trade sources said the sale may have come under some sort of cloud due to the recent raids on Food Corporation of India (FCI) officials and questions over the actual size of the stocks that the corporation holds.

Officially, the data shows that, as on January 1, 2023, India’s wheat stocks in the central pool were estimated around 17.17 million tonnes. This is almost 24.4 per cent more than the buffer and strategic reserve requirement for that date.

Of the 17.17 million tonnes of wheat stocks in the central pool, around