Indian weather is favorable for the sown chickpea crop. NDVI maps of India, Pakistan and Bangladesh all show acceptable growth for this time of year. Leaving much of the trade predicting good yields come March / April. According to official reports India has sown roughly 8.59 million ha, a 5.11% increase on last year.
Indian import policy is expected to be reviewed on or before March 31st when many of the current tariffs are due to expire. Current values for Indian pulses are low, this continues to leave the trade on edge. Many expecting to see some form of import restriction put in place, or domestic price support, to help sustain or increase values to the producer there.
With Ramadan falling between Feb 16th band March 18th this year demand for nearby chickpeas is expected to remain strong, but outer month demand is expected to wane as Indian chickpeas are harvested in March / April.
Competition for Australian chickpeas will come mainly from Canada and Russia. Russian pulse production increased 49% year on year, with 8mt of total pulse production there in 2025. Many think this rate of increase will not be sustained in 2026, but with cereal crop values around the world at low levels, the chance of Russian pulse production being sustained around this level is high.

US weekly export sales for the week ending Jan 1st were, expectedly, a little low. Wheat sales at just 119kt we well below trade estimates leading into the report. Year on year US export wheat sales are at 20.116mt US, currently 18% better than last year. Corn sales were also disappointing, at just 378kt. Surprisingly US soybeans sales shone through. At 878kt sales bean came in mid way between the range of estimates prior to the report.
Wheat futures at Chicago were generally flat to a smidge higher for all grades. Cash values out of the PNW followed, conversions aided by a weaker AUD.