Maize futures may be banned

The government on Friday said that it is considering a ban on futures trading as well as on exports of some other agri-commodities, including maize, to curb price rise, a senior government official said. “There is a proposal from the Department of Consumer Affairs to ban futures trading and export of maize because of a steep hike in its price,” commerce secretary Gopal K Pillai said today. “We would be possibly reviewing (the issue) sometime next week, then the decision will be taken,” Pillai said. There would, however, be no ban on oilseeds futures trading, as not much of a price rise in oilseeds had been witnessed, he said. “We will ban futures trading and exports of items where we see price increases much beyond the normal levels because of speculation,” Pillai said.

On maize, Pillai said that though it was not a major item on the wholesale price index, a ban on maize exports “is needed due to the steep increase in its price”. Maize is primarily used as poultry feed. “It is not a major item in WPI, but the poultry industry is hit hard due to the rise in its price,” he said.