The recent decline in jeera prices was due to weak domestic and export demand, especially after the end of the retail season. Following this, short covering by short-term investors led to a slight increase in jeera prices to close at ₹19,565, up 0.10%.
Farmers currently have 20 lakh bags of jeera. But only 3-4 lakh bags are likely to be sold before the end of this season. This leaves an additional 16 lakh bags, which is expected to dampen market sentiment.
This season, due to good weather conditions and small area reduction in major producing states like Gujarat and Rajasthan, jeera production is estimated at 90-92 lakh bags. This is lower than last year’s production of 11 crore bags.
Globally, war and weather-related issues are causing low production in countries like Afghanistan, Turkey and Syria. During April-May 2025, cumin exports declined by 27% to 42,925 tonnes. However, looking at May alone, there was a consistent 18% export growth over April.
