India’s April Vegetable Oil Imports Decline Amid Price Shifts

Image Source: Agro & Food Processing

India's vegetable oil imports last month decreased to 891,558 tonnes from 1 million tonnes a month ago, based on trade body estimates. The drop was mainly due to increased palm oil prices, prompting buyers to buy more soyoil.

Palm Oil Imports Decrease:

India's imports of palm oil dropped 24% from the previous month to 322,000 metric tons.
The decrease is the fifth month in a row of below-average palm oil imports.

Soyoil Buys Increase:

Soyoil imports rose by 2% to 363,000 metric tons.

Consumers preferred cheaper soyoil, shunning costly palm oil shipments.

Sunflower Oil Decline:

Sunflower oil imports decreased almost 6%, dropping to 180,000 metric tons, a seven-month low.

Total Edible Oil Imports:

Total edible oil imports in April fell 11% from March to 865,000 tonnes.
Nepal's imports of edible oil also reduced, decreasing to 85,000 tonnes in April from 135,000 tonnes in March.

Future Outlook:

Palm oil prices began trading at a discount to soyoil, potentially leading to higher buying of palm oil in May.
India still imports palm oil from Indonesia and Malaysia, while soyoil and sunflower oil are sourced from Argentina, Brazil, Russia, and Ukraine.

Insight:

India's vegetable oil import patterns mirror changing global price dynamics. The more expensive palm oil caused the country to buy soyoil in higher amounts, while sunflower oil imports slowed to a seven-month low. Now that the price of palm oil falls below that of soyoil, though, there is the potential for buyers to ramp up palm oil imports later in the year. Decreasing Nepal's edible oil imports also portend changing trade flows, as India's tax-free reexports slow down.

Sources: MSN, Financial Express, Economic Times