Sugar Prices Under Pressure as Production Rises India’s 2017/18 sugar production totaled 6.94 MMT as of 15 December 2017, up 5.346 MMT (29.81 percent) versus the same date last year. The sugar manufacturing/cane crushing was delayed in 2016, and it began this year on 1 October. With higher sugar production of 25.1 MMT expected against last year’s 20.3 MMT, according to the Indian Sugar Manufacturers Association (ISMA), prices continue to slide lower. There is also a panic sale by mills in Maharashtra. While the spot price is close to $500/MT, they are selling sugar at $450/MT, a discount of almost 10 percent that is helping to drive prices down.

Per ISMA, production in Maharashtra totaled 2.55 MMT as of 15 December, up 47.82...