MUMBAI: Indian sugar futures were treading water on Wednesday as expectations that the government would decontrol the sugar industry outweighed higher supplies and tepid demand.
As of 0908 GMT, the key April sugar contract on India's National Commodity and Derivatives Exchange was down 0.06 percent at 3,077 rupees per 100 kg.
"Traders are betting on decontrol. They are expecting that the government would lift restrictions on sugar industry this week," said an analyst at Emkay Commotrade Ltd.
"The sugar market is also expecting improvement in demand from bulk consumers in the coming weeks."
Demand for sugar from ice-cream and beverage makers typically rises during the summer.
India, the world's second-biggest producer of sugar after Brazil, has been exploring options to free up the sector from various controls to avoid cycles of oversupply and shortage.
The south Asian country is likely to produce 24.3 million tonnes of sugar in the current crop year ending on Sept. 30, against local demand of about 23 million tonnes.
Spot sugar eased by 4 rupees to 3,138 rupees per 100 kg in the Kolhapur market in top-producing Maharashtra state.
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