Do the higher quotes lead to a rising market?

The good news is that exports for medium grades are starting to pick up. Onions are exported to Eastern Europe and Asia is also on the market. However, demand is cautious and there is also a lot of competition. This means there is fierce price competition.

The fact that there is more sales for medium grading does not mean that consignments of medium grading onions are sold more easily. The mood for the 30% to 60% large onions is dull. The trade buys large batches and saves the medium sorting.

Top quality
Most destinations on the market require quality that is at the top end of the market. There remains demand from the trade for consignments with good quality, size and color. This is also reflected in the quotations of the 3 regional stock exchanges. All three noted a plus for the large onions. If a batch of onions meets good quality, size and color, the trade is prepared to pay for it.

However, the fact that there are still plenty of onions in the market that do not meet these 3 requirements is also reflected in the quotations. The lower end of the quotation for large onions remains stable, because there are still sufficient lots of lower quality on offer. This causes the spread to increase.

If we compare all 3 quotations from the regional stock exchanges, €30 to €60 is quoted for the 4% to 7,50% large onions and €60 to €7 for the 11% large onions. The fact that the quotation for large onions shows a plus gives a distorted picture. Although more is being paid for the very good lots, the demand for onions is calmer than in previous weeks.

Export
The demand for onions moves up and down. This week the demand for onions was calmer than last week. The export figures for week 7 are the most recent and amounted to more than 17.000 tons. The export figures for week 8 will probably be comparable, after which the export figures for week 9 and those of last week will probably be a lot less good.

(Text continues below the chart)The stock market prices for the 60% coarse show an increase.

Bale prices
Exports have been trying to raise bale prices for several weeks. However, these are stuck. As a result, onion prices for growers and bale prices are becoming increasingly difficult. Occasionally, exporters even have to take their losses. If onion prices want to make a good step forward, the bale price will have to rise in the short term. Exports will also need to be given a new boost.