India’s sugar production could fall in 2019-20

India’s sugar output is projected to fall by as much as 15% in 2019-20 due to the onset of severe drought in the major sugar growing regions. This will lessen the pressure on sugar mills to export surplus sugar and help boost global prices that have fallen by over 20% last year. The output in the upcoming crop year that starts in October could stay at 28-29 million tonnes compared  to 33 million tonnes last year, due to fall in cane area as well as reduction of yield due to shortage of water. But India will still have extra stock to export due to two years of surplus harvest.