India's turmeric drops 4 pct on profit-taking; pepper edges down

Aug 8 (Reuters) - Turmeric futures hit the maximum daily lower limit of 4 percent on Wednesday on extended profit-taking, driven by a bearish trend in the domestic market where demand was poor due to higher prices.

* At 0940 GMT, the September turmeric contract on the National Commodity and Derivatives Exchange (NCDEX) fell 4 percent to 6,092 rupees per 100 kg. The contract has risen more than 41 percent since the start of July on a decline in the seeded area.

* Turmeric prices are expected to trade weak on profit-taking but the trend remains bullish on lower sowing, Kotak Commodities said in a research note on Wednesday.

* In Nizamabad, a key market in Andhra Pradesh, turmeric fell 140 rupees to 5,571 rupees per 100 kg.

* India's monsoon rains are expected to be deficient in 2012, the weather office said on Aug. 3.

* Turmeric is planted between June and August and takes about nine months to harvest.

* Farmers slashed the area under turmeric sowing this season after prices fell sharply since the last year.

JEERA

Jeera, or cumin seed, futures fell as parts of Gujarat, the country's top producer, received rains while overseas demand declined.

* Some areas in Gujarat and Saurashtra are expected to receive rains in the next 2-3 days, the weather office said in a statement on its website.

* "Export enquires were very thin today as everyone was expecting a correction in prices," said Jay Kumar Jain, a trader from Unjha, a key market in Gujarat.

* Jeera is a winter crop sown from October, and farmers depend on the rains to moisten the land for sowing.

* The September jeera contract on the NCDEX fell 0.56 percent to 16,345 rupees per 100 kg.

* At Unjha, a key market in Gujarat, jeera rose 23 rupees to 16,479 rupees per 100 kg on thin domestic supplies.

PEPPER

Pepper futures edged down as a squeeze in supplies and lower inventory was offset by sluggish exports due to expensive Indian produce.

* The most-active September contract on the NCDEX edged down 0.11 percent to 43,840 rupees per 100 kg.

* "The price of Indian pepper is very high in the international market. Fresh arrivals from Indonesia and Malaysia are also weighing on sentiment," said a trader from Kochi, a key market in Kerala.

* In April, pepper exports fell 47 percent from a year earlier to 1,200 tonnes.

* Scanty rains in Kerala and Karnataka states, the leading pepper producers, are seen lowering yields, analysts said.

* In Kochi, spot pepper rose 89.5 rupees to 42,727.5 rupees. (Reporting by Meenakshi Sharma; Editing by Prateek Chatterjee)

Source: http://in.reuters.com/article/2012/08/08/markets-india-spices-idINL4E8J82YF20120808