Nine stocks from the BSE 500 index achieved their respective all-time highs on Monday, with shares surging by up to 11% during intra-day trading. According to The Economic Times, Balrampur Chini Mills emerged as the standout performer, gaining over 3% to reach ₹752 on the BSE, while Dhampur Sugar Mills surged 8% to ₹200 per share. Uttam Sugar Mills led the rally with a 11% gain to ₹359 per share, followed by Triveni Engineering which rose 4% to ₹306 and E.I.D Parry which gained over 4% to ₹831. The stock has demonstrated exceptional momentum with shares surging over 62% since the beginning of the year and rising over 21% in the past 12 months. Balrampur Chini has closed in green for 5 times out of the past 10 sessions, marking this as the stock's second biggest rise this year. Trading volumes reached over 48 lakh shares at 5.74 times the stock's 10-day average, reflecting strong investor interest.
Sugar prices have climbed sharply from around ₹41-42 per kg in the quarter to above ₹50 per kg amid tight inventories and supply concerns. As reported by The Economic Times, India's sugar demand usually surges from August to November as the country celebrates festivals like Ganesh Chaturthi, Dussehra and Diwali, leading to heightened demand for sweets, biscuits and other confectionery items. The government has ordered dealers to hold sugar stocks for no more than 30 days in a bid to bolster supplies, but sugar prices have risen 10% over the past month to record highs. Meanwhile, patchy rains and dry weather have hit sugarcane output, further supporting prices. Analysts expect sugar prices to remain elevated for at least the next three months, with the government tightening market scrutiny amid concerns over hoarding and an acute squeeze in supplies ahead of the festive season.
Supply concerns are mounting across major sugar-producing regions globally, with Brazil warning of harvest delays amid adverse weather conditions. According to The Economic Times, Brazil has suspended its bi-weekly harvest and production reports, leaving investors with limited visibility on the supply situation. In June, 58% of Brazil's cane juice was diverted towards ethanol, given that it is likely to be more profitable than sugar, with Brazil raising its mandatory ethanol blending target to 32% in July from 30% in June. Intense heatwaves and El Nino conditions across the EU and UK have added to fears of tighter supplies, with sugar output from the region trimmed to 14.98 million tonnes. In Asia, Thailand has cut its projected output by 15.6% to 9.5 million tonnes, while India is also projecting lower sugar production. Global deficit estimates point towards a tighter market, with Green Pool projecting a global sugar deficit of 3.3 million tonnes and StoneX estimating the shortfall at 1.7 million tonnes.
Balrampur Chini Mills reached its highest level since October 2024, surpassing its previous high of ₹692.85 touched in October 2024. As reported by Business Standard, the stock hit a new high after a gap of nearly two years, driven by over four-fold jump in average trading volumes on healthy business outlook. The company, which is the second-most valued sugar company after EID Parry, reported that the season 2025-26 has turned out to be tighter than anticipated, with lower-than-expected production, healthy domestic consumption and diversion towards ethanol resulting in a drawdown in inventory. This tighter demand-supply balance has led to firming up of domestic sugar prices, providing relief to millers and helping offset higher sugarcane costs. With sugar prices at record levels, higher realisations are expected to provide a significant boost to sugar-mill profitability, given that cane costs are largely fixed through government-administered pricing mechanisms.
