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India's palm oil imports fell in April. The decline was due to higher palm oil prices compared to soybean oil. As a result, soybean oil purchases increased. Overall, edible oil imports also fell. However, palm oil is now cheaper than soybean oil. This change could lead to an increase in palm oil purchases in May. Nepal's edible oil imports also fell in April.
India's palm oil imports in April fell by about a quarter from the previous month, the fifth consecutive month below normal levels, as the premium of tropical oils over competing soybean oil led to higher soybean oil purchases, according to five dealers.
Lower-than-normal palm oil imports by India, the world's largest vegetable oil buyer, could put pressure on Malaysian palm oil prices and support the future of US soybean oil. Palm oil imports in April fell 24 percent month-on-month to 322,000 metric tons, according to dealers.
India imported an average of more than 750,000 tons of palm oil each month during the marketing year that ended in October 2024, said the Solvent Extractors' Association of India, which is set to publish its April import data by mid-May. Palm oil prices have been elevated due to tight supplies, which encouraged price-sensitive buyers to increase soyoil purchases, said Sandeep Bajoria, CEO of Sunvin Group, a vegetable oil brokerage.
Traders have been opting for lower-priced soyoil for the past several months, and imports increased again in April, rising 2 per cent month-on-month to 363,000 tons, dealers said. Sunflower oil imports, meanwhile, fell nearly 6 per cent to 180,000 metric tons, the lowest in seven months. Lower imports of palm oil and sunflower oil lowered India's total edible oil imports in April to 865,000 tons, marking an 11 per cent drop from the prior month, according to dealers' estimates.
Palm oil, however, has now started trading at a discount to soyoil, which is encouraging Indian buyers to increase palm oil purchases for shipments from May onwards, said Rajesh Patel, managing partner at GGN Research, an edible oil trader.
India buys palm oil mainly from Indonesia and Malaysia, while it imports soyoil and sunflower oil from Argentina, Brazil, Russia and Ukraine. Nepal's edible oil imports were 85,000 tons in April, down from 135,000 tons in March, GGN Research estimated.
More than half of Nepal's imports are ultimately destined for re-export to the Indian market as refined products since goods from the Himalayan country are tax-free under the South Asian Free Trade Agreement (SAFTA), Patel said.
Source: Online/OFA
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