Indian onion trades that amounted to $378 million between 2020-2021, 460 million by 2021-2022 and $561 million by 2022-2023 and are expected to dramatically fall in 2023-2024 because of the eight-month ban on exports. The ban is a problem for not just farmers, but also traders. Traders suffer the most from the timeframe of the ban that is in conjunction with an international renewal of contracts beginning in January.

The ban on exports caused a rise in price of onions in the neighboring countries such as Nepal, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Bhutan, and Malaysia who depend upon India to get their supply of onions. The traders are concerned about the longer-term financial implications.

This ban can also result in the loss of market share for Indian exporters, as nations like China as well as Pakistan have an advantage in selling onions to countries that were previously dependent on India. Despite the tough conditions for the onion industry and its traders, experts anticipate a short-term effect.

Pushan Sharma Director of Research for Crisil Market Intelligence and Analytics is optimistic that due to India’s huge onion production and the fact that these countries may be able to importing from India after normalcy has been restored in the coming year. This year however it is necessary to find alternative sources.

Source: cnbctv18.com