Wheat dara, at the local market further edged up by Rs 2-3 at Rs 642-650 a quintal on consistent support from the stockists. Wheat bran firmed up by Rs 10 at Rs 245 per 50 kg bag on good demand from cattlefeed units. New maize with mositure slipped by Rs 5 at Rs 600 a quintal while old ruled firm at Rs 615 a quintal. New maize in Bihar mandies in loose was selling at Rs 460 a quintal.

Among pulses, masoor flared up by Rs 25-35 at Rs 1575-1800 a quintal due to tight supply from Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan. Arhar dal and gram prices remained subdued due to weak demand from eastern Indian buyers.

Cottonseed oil firm
According to the ministry of agriculture, output of oilseeds fell to 215.40 lakh tonnes while during last year it was about 252 lakh tonnes. However, import of edible oils, during April this year was more than 3 lakh tonnes of which share of palmolein was 1.69 lakh tonnes despite hike in import duty from 16.50 per cent to 32.50 per cent while crude palm oil import was 76,572 tonnes.

Cottonseed oil firmed up by Rs 20 at Rs 2460 a quintal due to short supply because of off-season.

Among industrial oils, linseed oil tumbled down by Rs 50 at Rs 2500 a quintal due to sluggish demand from paint units while on support from soap units, mahuwa and rice bran oils flared up by Rs 50-80 a quintal.

Mumbai: The Bombay oil,oilseeds ready market remained officially closed today following sudden death of a leading member of the Exchange.

Forward market however remained open and the trend was weak, dealers said.In the futures section castorseed June delivery commenced firm from Rs 1,858 to Rs 1,864 but later weak Gujarat advices prompted renewed bull unloading and the contract closed lwoer at Rs 1,849 per quintal, floor sources said. September delivery was untraded. In the international castor oil futures market, June delivery was steady at Rs 414 per 10 kg. Meanwhile in the kerb trading, groundnut oil maintained at Rs 355/365 per 10 kg. In Rajkot it was quiet at Rs 615 per 15 kg.

Imported palm oil was steady at Rs 210 per 10 kg but the undercurrent was bullish amidst market talks that government may hike import duty on edible oils, according to a dealer.

In the global market palm oil unchanged at $330 per tonne for the nearby delivery and $332.50/335 for long delivery, it was learnt. In Ahmedabad castorseed June delivery placed lower at Rs 1,779 and September delivery at Rs 1,832 per quintal. Castorseed spot prices eased to Rs 340/345 per 20 kg. Castor oil eased to Rs 379/380 per 10 kg in Gujarat.

Gold sovereign falls
Both the precious metals, at the Delhi bullion market displayed an easy tendency on Friday.

In the wake of likely sale of gold by the Swiss Bank, gold in London dipped from $278.50 to $275.65 an ounce coupled with increased inflow of imported gold, gold biscuit and standard mint gold here fell by Rs 30 at Rs 4370 and Rs 4380 per 10 gram, respectively. The Bank of England is expected to unload its 25 tonnes gold instalment on May 23.

New York silver future slipped from 504 cents to 500 cents an ounce, consequently, spot silver .999 fineness here slipped by Rs 2 at Rs 7730 a kg and silver weekly delivery also lost Rs 6 at Rs 7750 a kg in sympathy. Silver coins held steady at Rs 10,700-10,800 per 100 pieces.

Mumbai: Gold and silver prices extended losses on the bullion market here on Friday.

Standard gold closed Rs 5 lower at Rs 4,380 per 10 gram. Gold 22-carat was down by same margin at Rs 4,050 per 10 gram. Prices of gold biscuit (116.50 gram) dropped by Rs 100 at Rs 51,300 per piece. Physical buying was at a low ebb while steady overseas supplies in the wake of weak advices prompted fresh offerings in the local market, dealers said. Continued upsurge in dollar value against rupee however had not any bullish impact on the market sentiment. In the global market gold slide from $277.25 to $276.55 per an ounce.

Meanwhile silver .999 drifted lower by Rs 20 at Rs 7,880 so was silver .916 at Rs 7,750 per kg. Industrial buyers kept sideline in the falling market while weak Delhi and overseas advices pulled down prices in the local market. Fresh inflow of imported silver remain virtually absent while traders reported supplies of 75-100 kg of raw silver from local sources. In the global market the white metal eased below $5 mark at $4.99 per an ounce.

Gur spurts
Despite procurement of 8-10,000 bags of sugar by local and Uttar Pradesh parties, mill delivery sugar Mawana fell by Rs 10 at Rs 1522 a quintal on selling pressure. Mill delivery sugar Modi was traded at Rs 1435, Douralla Rs 1425, Simbhaoli Rs 1436 and Asmoli Rs 1408 a quintal.

As against this, gur flared up by Rs 50 at Rs 1200-1250 a quintal amidst tight supply position from western Uttar Pradesh.

Yarn lacklustre
Mumbai: In lacklustre trading, prices hovered around the previous day's levels on the yarn market.

Polyester yarn grey first quality of medium sized units 80dn roto ruled at Rs 88-89, weft at Rs 86-87, micro roto at Rs 94, 80/1000dn at Rs 120-125 and 80/1400dn at Rs 128-130 a kg.

150dn weft and single roto remained on offer at Rs 76 and at Rs 78 respectively.

Betelnut slips
Though output of black pepper in Malaysia is expected to be higher by about 2000 tonnes to 24,000 tonnes and Vietnam prices being lower than India, demand in Indian black pepper was reported sluggish. However, on support from professional bulls in Kochi, black pepper prices edged up by Rs 5-10 at Rs 235-285 a kg while cardamom small Chitridar and Robin prices fell from Rs 550-730 to Rs 535-720 a kg despite restricted inflow at the south auction centres.

Betelnut slipped by Rs 2-3 a kg due to panic selling by the stockists and poppyseed prices also ruled easy. Import of betelnut was reported from Indonesia and Thailand.

Among dry fruits, almond California, dry dates Rangkot and copra prices were quoted lower due to sluggish demand.