Sugar stocks in demand; surge up to 7% amid reports of govt likely to announce Rs 7,000 cr bailout package for sector

New Delhi: Sugar stocks rose by up to 7 percent on Tuesday amid reports that the government is likely to announce a bailout package of over Rs 7,000 crore to ensure cash-starved mills clear dues to farmers at the earliest. [caption id=“attachment_2728046” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Representational image.[/caption] Shares of Dhampur Sugar Mills soared 6.62 percent, Avadh Sugar & Energy (6.55 percent), Mawana Sugars (6.54 percent), Balrampur Chini Mills (6.28 percent), Bajaj Hindusthan Sugar (5.79 percent) and Uttam Sugar Mills (5.79 percent) on BSE. Concerned over mounting cane arrears of more than Rs 22,000 crore, the government is likely to announce a bailout package of over Rs 7,000 crore to ensure cash-starved mills clear dues to farmers at the earliest, sources said on Monday. A decision in this regard is expected to be taken in the meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) on 6 June, the sources added. Sugar mills are unable to make payments to cane growers as their financial health has worsened due to a sharp fall in sugar prices after a record production of 31.6 million tonne (MT) so far in the 2017-18 season (October-September).