Sugar Stocks Rally Up to 4% as Domestic Sugar Prices Surge; Balrampur Chini, Dhampur Sugar, Uttam Sugar Lead Gainers
Key Takeaways
- •Retail sugar prices rose from Rs 48.18 per kg on July 20 to Rs 55.70 per kg on August 20 and are now around Rs 70 per kg.
- •Balrampur Chini Mills, Dhampur Sugar, Uttam Sugar Mills, Triveni Engineering and EID Parry were among the main gainers, with some shares rising as much as 4%.
- •The report says higher sugar prices can improve realisations for sugar producers in India.
- •Pralhad Joshi said sugar production has been affected by red rot and El Nino, and the government is taking measures.
- •Experts cited by Economic Times attributed the price rise to lower sugarcane production and stockpiling rather than ethanol diversion.
Sugar stocks extended their rally, with Balrampur Chini Mills, Dhampur Sugar and Uttam Sugar Mills among the shares climbing as much as 4%, after domestic sugar prices surged sharply over the past month.
Government data cited by Economic Times Markets showed retail sugar prices rising from Rs 48.18 per kg on July 20 to Rs 55.70 per kg on August 20, with prices currently around Rs 70 per kg. The move matters beyond trading screens: sugar is a household staple in India, and sustained increases in its retail price feed into food inflation readings that the government tracks closely.
Balrampur Chini Mills, Dhampur Sugar, Uttam Sugar, Triveni Engineering and EID Parry were among the key gainers, the report said. All five are major sugar producers in India, which is one of the world's largest producers and consumers of sugar. For these mills, the surge in domestic sugar prices translates into higher realisations on the sugar they sell; several also produce ethanol from sugarcane juice and molasses under India's ethanol blending programme, making them sensitive to policy on how much cane is diverted to fuel versus sugar.
The report centered on two big triggers behind the move: the drivers of the sharp rise in domestic sugar prices and the government's bid to respond to the increase. ET's related coverage points to supply-side pressure behind the surge: Union Minister Pralhad Joshi has said sugar production has been hit by red rot and El Nino, and that the government is taking measures, while experts cited by the paper attribute the rise to a decline in sugarcane production and stockpiling rather than ethanol diversion. The government's next policy steps and production data for the new season are the key things to watch from here.
Related coverage from Economic Times:
- Sugar production hit by red rot, El Nino; govt taking measures: Pralhad Joshi
- No ethanol link: decline in sugarcane production and stockpiling driving up sugar price, say experts
Source: Economic Times Markets (report by Veer Sharma, ETMarkets, published August 28, 2026)
