For the fourth week in a row, the Emmeloord Stock Exchange Committee lists potatoes that have not been traded in the market. How long will the stock market last?
The quotation in Emmeloord has been at €4 to €5 per 100 kilos for quite some time, with the comment: 'No free trade, quotation based on co-delivered kilograms'. This means that no transactions were made with free potatoes.
The definition of trading, on which quotes can be compiled, is 'a set of buying and selling transactions on the open market'. Only prices agreed upon by grower and buyer are recorded. This quotation can serve as a benchmark.
What does Emmeloord rely on?
There is no demand for free potatoes in the market, but agreements have been made about the potatoes to be supplied. These must be settled on the basis of the trade and the market of that week. If a price is determined at random, it could just as well be €1 or €8 per 100 kilos.
The question now is how long can the listing committee keep this up? After all, the sector must get a good picture of trade based on supply and demand. It is therefore interesting to see how Belgapom develops in terms of price.
The Belgapo listing
The sometimes maligned Belgapom quotation shows a higher quotation than what is priced in the Netherlands and Germany. This is done on the basis of completed transactions. So what exactly is the market and how can it be captured in a quotation if there is no supply or demand in the market?