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Rupee opens flat at 82.43 against the US dollarThe Indian rupee opened flat at 82.43 against the US dollar on Tuesday as softer greenback and strong domestic macroeconomic data supported the local unit, while a rise in crude oil prices kept a check

"Three states defy GM regulator's directions to reject transgenic cotton trials".A proposal put forth by the Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee (GEAC) to conduct field trials of a new transgenic cotton seed has been rejected by three Indian states: Gujarat, Maharashtra and Telangana.The seed, developed by Hyderabad-based Bioseed Research India, contains a gene called cry2ae, which is claimed to confer resistance to pink bollworm, a devastating pest that affects cotton crops. Although the seed had already gone through limited trials and a recommendation was received from GEAC for field trials at several places, these states refused permission for the trials.In India, the approval process for transgenic seeds requires open field trials before they are cleared for commercial development by the GEAC. As agriculture is a subject governed by the states, companies wishing to test their seeds must obtain approval from the respective state governments. Of the four states where Bioseed had applied for permission, only Haryana gave approval for the trial.In October 2022, the GEAC sent letters to all states requesting their views and comments on the proposed trials within a two-month deadline. Only Telangana responded within the stipulated period, seeking an extension of 45 days to consider the proposal. On May 16, 2023, Telangana conveyed its decision not to allow trials in the current cropping season. Gujarat also responded by saying that the proposal was unacceptable, but did not give any specific reasons.The minutes of the GEAC meeting held on May 17 were made public last week and follow-up actions were highlighted. After the meeting, the regulator wrote to Telangana, Gujarat and Maharashtra seeking their response and reasons for rejection. In case no response is received within the specified time frame, the GEAC will make suitable recommendations based on the available information.In addition, GEAC collaborated with the Department of Biotechnology and the Indian Council of Agricultural Research to organize capacity building activities to educate state governments about genetically modified (GM) crops, the underlying technology and the regulatory framework for evaluating such crops. cooperation is requested. , The GEAC comprises experts in agriculture and plant genetics and is headed by a senior official from the Ministry of Environment and Forests, with a senior scientist from the Department of Biotechnology serving as co-chairman. However, activist groups have objected to the GEAC's request for reasons from states, considering it undue pressure on state governments.Kavitha Kuruganti, a member of the GM Free India Alliance, expressed her concern about the approach of the GEAC. He questioned why the GEAC is pressurizing state governments like Telangana and Gujarat to give reasons or break their silence when they have refused to provide NOCs (No Objection Certificates). He further criticized the fact that GEAC, as a statutory regulator, is adopting a biased lobbying approach by engaging in activities with the State Governments to influence their decision making process. He highlighted that this approach contradicts the supposed neutrality of a regulatory body.

Rupee strengthened by 3 paise against dollarThe rupee strengthened by 3 paise to close at Rs 82.43 against the dollar this evening.Sensex closed up by 99 pointsToday the stock market closed with a boom.Today, where the Sensex closed at a level of 62724.71 points with a gain of about 99.08 points.On the other hand, the Nifty closed at a level of 18601.50 points with a gain of 38.10 points.

Pakistan Weekly Cotton Review: Rise in spot rate as the market trended bullishKarachi: Cotton prices witnessed an uptrend in the cotton market and the spot price was increased by Rs 500 per head. With the cotton crop being satisfactory, the supply of footy is increasing day by day.However, import contracts for 6 million bales of cotton worth $2 billion have already been signed. Only Rs 147 crore has been allocated in the budget for better production of cotton.President of Cotton Ginners Forum, Ahsanul Haque has said that concessions were given in the budget for the agriculture sector, but no relief was given to the cotton ginning sector.In the local cotton market, ginners offloaded cotton last week, which led to an uptrend in the market. New cotton crop deals were fixed at Rs 20,500 to Rs 21,300 per head after rising from Rs 8,00 to Rs 1,200 per head.The rate of foot was 9500 to 10000 rupees per 40 kg. Fruity rates saw an increase of Rs 7,00 to Rs 1,000 per 40 kg with several ginning factories partially working. Market; However, a downward trend was observed on Saturday evening.At present cotton spinners are not interested in selling cotton before Id-ul-Azha and before rains due to exceptionally good quality of cotton, which is the reason for increase in the price of cotton.Cotton prices in Sindh and Punjab ranged between Rs 20,500 to Rs 21,300 per head after an increase of Rs 8,00 to Rs 12,00 per head. The price of futi is between Rs 9500 to Rs 10000 per 40 kg after an increase of Rs 1000 to Rs 1200 per 40 kg. The rates of Khal and Banola are showing a rising trend. The spot rate committee of the Karachi Cotton Association increased the spot rate by Rs 5,00 per head and closed it at Rs 20,500 per head.Naseem Usman said that overall the international cotton market remained stable. According to USDA's weekly export and sales report for the year 2022-23, four lakh eighty thousand four hundred bales were sold.Meanwhile, cotton sowing in the country is currently completed in 2.588 million hectares against the target of 2.767 million hectares for the crop season 2023-24 for exports as well as meeting the industrial and commercial requirements of the local industry.The farming community in the crop growing areas has completed cultivation of more than 93.53% of the total area earmarked for the season to achieve a production of 12.77 million bales by the first week of this month (June).In Punjab, sowing of the crop has been completed in 95.11% area on 1.920 million hectare against the fixed target of 2.019 million hectare for production of about 8.336 million bales during the current season.Meanwhile, Sindh has achieved more than 84.49 per cent of its set target and has sown 0.5678 million hectares against the set target of 0.672 million hectares, while the cotton production target for the province has been set at 4.00 million bales.During the season, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and Balochistan provinces saw an increase in cotton sowing as both the provinces achieved 113 per cent and 132.24 per cent of their planting targets, respectively.The Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the Cabinet has fixed the intervention price of cotton (futti) at Rs 8,500 per 40 kg to revive cotton production, stabilize the domestic market and ensure fair returns to farmers in the country.Farmers' per acre income is witnessing a huge reduction due to a record rise in the cost of production of textile mills and a record fall in cotton prices due to non-functioning of ginning factories.Apart from this, only fourteen crore seventy lakh rupees have been kept in the federal budget for better production of cotton.

Rupee gains 2 paise at 82.44 against US dollarThe Indian rupee opened flat against the US dollar on Monday amid weakness in Asian currencies. The local unit opened at 82.44 per dollar, higher by 2 paise compared to Friday's closing price of 82.46.Sensex opened up 158.02 pointsIn early trade, the 30-share BSE Sensex climbed 158.02 points to 62,783.65 points.The NSE Nifty rose 70.2 points to 18,633.60.

Cotton prices expected to stabilize due to 9% hike in MSPCotton prices, which have fallen over 25% in the last eight months, are expected to stabilize after the government on Wednesday raised the minimum support price (MSP) of the commodity by around 9% annually for the 2023-24 marketing season .The fall in prices caused unrest among cotton farmers, who were holding their produce in the hope of better prices, causing a shortage of cotton in the market.Cotton prices have come down to Rs 7,200 per quintal from a high of Rs 10,000 per quintal in October. Industry experts said if the fall in prices continues, farmers may prefer to wait till the next season to sell at the new MSP of Rs 7,020 per quintal.An increase in the MSP of cotton will also help arrest the fall in cotton prices. “Instead of selling cotton at lower rates, farmers can choose to wait and sell cotton at the new MSP to the government in the next cotton season.”The area planted under cotton is also likely to be supported by the increased MSP. “We were expecting a drop in cotton acreage before the government announced the MSP. However, now the area under cotton may increase by around 5%,” said Pradeep Jain, president, Khandesh Ginning and Pressing Association.The increase in MSP is expected to provide sufficient raw material to the cotton processors. "We could not run our mills at full capacity as farmers did not bring enough cotton to the market this year," said Avinash Kabra, a cotton processor from Dharangaon in northern Maharashtra. "Any increase in production of cotton due to increase in MSP will increase the supply of raw material for the cotton-based industry."However, south India's export-oriented spinning mills cautioned that a hike in MSP without increasing cotton productivity could jeopardize India's competitiveness in international markets.Southern India Mills Association President Ravi Sam said, "Increasing MSP is not the solution to increase cotton production in India. We need to improve the productivity of cotton by bringing in better technology and better seeds."Sharma said, "Although higher production is expected in cotton for the marketing year 2023-24, if mandi prices are seen to decline, this higher MSP will augur well for farmers' income in Maharashtra, Telangana and Gujarat." which are major cotton producing states.

Rupee strengthened by 10 paise against dollarThe rupee strengthened by 10 paise to close at Rs 82.46 against the dollar this evening.Sensex breaks 223 pointsToday, the stock market closed with a fall for the second consecutive day.Today, where the Sensex closed at a level of 62625.63 points, down by about 223.01 points.On the other hand, the Nifty closed at a level of 18563.40 points with a fall of 71.10 points.

Pakistan: Spot rate stable amid slow activityLAHORE: The local cotton market was upbeat on Thursday with satisfactory trading volume.Cotton analyst Naseem Usman told TOI that the reason behind the bullish trend is that ginners are oversold and not breaking.He also said that the rate of new cotton crop in Sindh and Punjab is Rs 20,300 to Rs 20,500 per head. The rate of footi in Sindh and Punjab is Rs 8,800 to Rs 9,700 per head.The spot rate remained unchanged at Rs 20,000 per head. Polyester fiber was available at Rs 355 per kg.

Rupee opens 8 paise higher at 82.48 against US dollarThe Indian rupee opened 8 paise higher against US dollar on Friday tracking losses in the American currency after a rise in US jobless claims increased hopes that the Federal Reserve will hold interest rates next week. The local unit opened at 82.48 a dollar, 8 paise higher than its previous close of 82.56.

Rupee's value dips slightly, loses 2 paise against dollarThis evening, the rupee closed at a level of 82.56 against the dollar with a weakness of 2 paise.Sensex dropped 294 pointsToday the stock market closed with a fall.Today the Sensex closed at a level of 62848.64 points down by about 294.32 points.On the other hand, the Nifty closed at the level of 18634.50 points with a decline of 91.90 points.

India Monsoon reaches Kerala after longest delay in 7 yearsMonsoon rains reached India's southernmost Kerala coast on Thursday, bringing relief to farmers after more than a week's delay, marking their latest arrival in seven years.The monsoon, the lifeblood of the country's $3 trillion economy, provides about 70% of the rainfall India needs to water farmland and recharge reservoirs and aquifers.In the absence of irrigation systems, almost half of India's agricultural land depends on June-September rains and their late arrival could delay planting of rice, cotton, maize, soybean and sugarcane, traders said."The southwest monsoon has entered Kerala today, June 8, 2023, as against the normal date of June 1," the state-run India Meteorological Department (IMD) said in a statement.This year the IMD had expected monsoon rains along the state's coast on June 4, but their onset was delayed due to the formation of a severe cyclonic storm Biparjoy in the Arabian Sea.The IMD has confirmed that the monsoon has set in over the southern state of Kerala, taking into account the rainfall and westerly wind speed measured at weather stations.IMD said conditions are favorable for further advance of Monsoon into central Arabian Sea and some parts of Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka states.