India to produce surplus sugar for 6th straight year

India, the world's second biggest sugar producer after Brazil, is likely to churn out a surplus for the sixth straight year despite erratic rainfall in key growing areas, a leading industry body said in its preliminary estimate on Friday. The south Asian country is likely to produce 28 million tonnes in the 2015/16 year starting October 1, compared with local demand of about 25 million tonnes, the Indian Sugar Mills Association said in a statement.
In the current season, the country is likely to produce 28.3 million tonnes sugar, it said. The surplus production could depress local prices and increase losses of debt-ridden sugar mills, prompting the country to maintain exports to trim rising inventory. The production of top producing western state of Maharashtra could drop 7.6 percent to 9.7 million tonnes due to scanty rains in cane growing areas, it said.