India is both the world's largest producer and the world's largest consumer of pulses, which makes it an unusual origin: domestic demand sets the floor under the export price, and policy can move that floor without much notice.
What actually moves the price
- Monsoon performance. Kharif pulses — mainly tur and urad — depend on the south-west monsoon. Rabi pulses, chickpea above all, depend on residual soil moisture and winter conditions. A weak monsoon shows up in prices months before it shows up in harvest data.
- Government policy. Minimum support prices, buffer stock releases, and periodic adjustments to import duties all move the domestic market, and the export price follows.
- Competing origins. Canada, Australia, Myanmar, Russia and several East African countries supply overlapping products. When Australian chickpea has a strong year, Indian kabuli faces a ceiling.
- Currency. Rupee movement changes the landed cost for a dollar-denominated buyer without anything happening to the crop at all.
The products, and who buys them
| Pulse | Also called | Main export destinations |
|---|---|---|
| Chickpea (kabuli) | Garbanzo | Europe, Middle East, North America |
| Chickpea (desi) | Bengal gram, chana | South Asia diaspora markets, Middle East |
| Pigeon pea | Tur, arhar, toor dal | East Africa, Caribbean, diaspora markets |
| Green gram | Moong | Middle East, South East Asia |
| Black gram | Urad | Diaspora markets worldwide |
| Red lentil | Masoor | Middle East, North Africa |
For kabuli chickpea, calibre is the pricing variable that matters most. Size is quoted in count per ounce or in millimetres, and larger calibres carry a clear premium. A buyer who specifies only "kabuli chickpea" without a calibre is leaving the most important number off the enquiry.
Quality parameters to specify
- Purity — percentage, after machine cleaning and colour sorting
- Moisture — typically 12–14% maximum depending on the pulse
- Foreign matter and admixture — percentage maximums
- Damaged, shrivelled and weevilled grain — percentage maximums
- Calibre — for chickpea, non-negotiable
- Crop year — older stock cooks differently and discounts accordingly
Timing an order
Kharif pulses arrive in the market from roughly October, rabi pulses from around March. Prices are typically softest in the weeks following peak arrivals and firm through the lean period before the next harvest. If your requirement is predictable, contracting around arrival rather than in the lean months is usually the cheaper decision.
None of that is a forecast. Arrival-season pricing can be upended by a policy announcement or a strong crop in a competing origin. What it is, is a sensible default that beats buying whenever you happen to run out.