Indian Green Cardamom: Delhi FOB Holds Firm Despite Softer Auctions

Indian green cardamom prices at New Delhi FOB are broadly steady in mid‑April, with only marginal week‑on‑week moves despite slightly softer sentiment at origin auctions in Kerala. Export uncertainty linked to Middle East tensions continues to cap upside, but resilient domestic demand is preventing a deeper correction.

Indian market participants are watching Kerala auction trends and Gulf logistics closely. Spices Board auction data for 17 April show average small-cardamom prices near ₹2,720/kg with full clearance of arrivals, signalling that buyers are still willing to absorb supply at current levels even as geopolitical risks weigh on exports.

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📈 Prices

FOB New Delhi offers for Indian green cardamom are currently holding close to recent averages, with a broadly sideways pattern over the last four weeks. Spices Board data indicate that at the 17 April 2026 small cardamom auction, about 80.7 tonnes were offered and fully sold, with an average price of roughly ₹2,719/kg and a maximum around ₹3,401/kg, confirming firm spot fundamentals at origin despite modest softening versus early March levels.

Converting current auction averages to export parity in euros (assuming ~₹90/EUR and allowing for trade margins, sorting and logistics), working export values for mainstream qualities align with a band around EUR 24–32/kg CIF main Middle East ports, consistent with stable to slightly easier Delhi FOB indications versus late March. Recent commentary notes Delhi FOB had eased slightly into mid‑April alongside a mild softening in Kerala auctions, but without any sharp break, and speculative futures positioning remains balanced with only mild contango into late May.

Product	Origin / Term	Indicative range (EUR/kg)	Trend vs. 1 week
Green cardamom whole, 6.0–6.5 mm	India, FOB New Delhi	≈ 18–20	Sideways
Green cardamom whole, 7–7.5 mm	India, FOB New Delhi	≈ 22–25	Sideways / slightly softer
Green cardamom whole, 8 mm premium	India, FOB New Delhi	≈ 24–27	Sideways
Organic cardamom powder	India, FOB New Delhi	≈ 25–28	Sideways

🌍 Supply & Demand

On the supply side, Kerala’s main cardamom belt (Idukki and adjacent high ranges) is currently in the late season with seasonally warm, mostly dry pre‑monsoon weather. Recent market commentary notes that these conditions pose no immediate threat to plantations and that the short‑term focus remains on export demand and auction flows rather than crop risk.

Arrivals at the 17 April auction reached over 80 tonnes and were fully absorbed, implying that prompt physical availability is comfortable but not burdensome. This follows a period earlier in March when small cardamom auctions around Thekkady and Bodinayakanur mostly traded in the ₹2,250–2,350/kg range, described as a mildly bearish phase driven by heavier arrivals; current averages around ₹2,700/kg show that prices have recovered some ground since that trough.

Demand is being pulled in opposite directions. On the one hand, domestic consumption, especially in North India, remains steady after the Holi season and into the summer beverage and confectionery period, helping to cushion growers from export volatility. On the other hand, reports from Kerala highlight that the Middle East conflict has led to a marked slowdown in Indian cardamom exports to key Gulf markets like Iran and Saudi Arabia, jeopardising earlier expectations for record exports of around 14,000 tonnes in 2026.

Despite these headwinds, structural global supply remains relatively tight. Industry analysis in recent weeks underlines that Guatemala’s 2024/25 cardamom harvest is still recovering from a severe drought, with residual production losses estimated around 30% and ongoing weather-related stress. That has limited the extent of price correction in India even as export demand softened, and it continues to underpin the floor under international cardamom values.

📊 Fundamentals & Weather

Fundamental indicators remain broadly supportive. Recent analysis of India’s small-cardamom export performance shows roughly 9% volume growth and over 50% value growth year-on-year in the 2024–25 marketing year through March, confirming that unit export prices have risen strongly despite temporary pauses in shipments to some conflict-affected destinations. Futures curves show only mild contango into late May, indicating that traders do not anticipate either a major surplus or acute tightness in the near term.

In Kerala’s cardamom hills, IMD-style regional updates and local commentary in mid‑April describe typical pre‑monsoon conditions: hot daytime temperatures, limited rainfall and rising humidity. Touristic inquiries about late‑April conditions around Munnar and nearby hill districts confirm expectations of hot, rather humid but largely dry weather, which is broadly neutral for standing cardamom bushes but could require more irrigation on younger plantations. No alerts for heavy rainfall or storms have been issued for Idukki in the past few days, reducing near-term weather risk for supply.

📆 3‑Day Outlook & Trading View

Over the next three trading days (19–21 April 2026), Indian cardamom prices are likely to remain range‑bound. Recent assessments looking at Kerala auctions, Delhi FOB offers and export statistics projected a sideways to mildly softer euro-denominated bias through mid‑April; with no major new shocks on weather or logistics since then, that sideways pattern should broadly persist into the coming sessions.

🧭 Trading outlook

• Importers (EU / non‑Gulf): Use current stability in Delhi FOB to secure partial coverage for Q2–Q3 requirements; downside from here appears limited by tight global supply, while upside risk could re‑emerge if Middle East logistics normalise suddenly.
• Exporters (India): Prioritise markets with lower payment and shipping risk (EU, North America, select African buyers) while keeping tight credit controls on Gulf business until freight and banking channels stabilise. Short‑term, be flexible on euro pricing but avoid deep discounts on premium 7.5–8 mm lots.
• Domestic buyers: For Indian blenders and retailers, the current plateau in auction prices offers a window to build strategic stocks before monsoon‑season weather uncertainty and any rebound in export demand potentially lift values later in the year.

📍 Indicative 3‑day price direction (India)

• Kerala auctions (small cardamom, average quality): Expected to trade broadly around the recent ₹2,600–2,800/kg band, bias neutral to slightly softer in EUR terms given FX and freight volatility.
• FOB New Delhi, mainstream whole grades: EUR prices likely to move within ±1–2% of current offers, with no clear catalyst for a breakout either side.
• Premium large sizes & organic powder: Price differentials over standard grades should remain firm as supply of top‑spec and certified lots remains relatively tight.

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