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India’s edible oil imports went up by 3.09 per cent in May when compared to April due to higher imports of soyabean and sunflower oil.
India imported 10.53 lakh tonnes (lt) of edible oil in May, against 10.21 lt in April.
Also read: Import duty on refined sunflower, soyabean oil reduced to 12.5 per cent
B.V. Mehta, Executive Director of the Solvent Extractors’ Association (SEA) of India, said the import of soyabean and sunflower oil increased by 21.5 per cent and 18.5 per cent, respectively, in May when compared to April. However, palm oil imports dropped by 13.9 per cent in the month.
Soyabean oil imports were at 3.18 lt in May (2.62 lt in April), sunflower oil at 2.95 lt (2.49 lt), and palm oil at 4.39 lt (5.10 lt). Shipments of sunflower and soyabean oils increased sharply in April and May, he said.
Edible oil imports during the first seven months of the oil year 2022-23 (November-October) stood at 90.55 lt, against 75.48 lt in the corresponding period of the oil year 2021-22, recording 19.96 per cent growth.
Of this, import of palm oil products (including RBD palmolein and crude palm oil) increased to 53.48 lt during November-May, against 37.39 lt in the corresponding period of the previous oil year, recording 43.01 per cent growth. Mehta said the import of palm products had sharply increased due to price parity.
During the first seven months of the oil year 2022-23, import of soyabean oil declined to 20.44 lt (25.79 lt), and sunflower oil increased to 16.62 lt (12.28 lt).
Major exporters
Indonesia and Malaysia are the major suppliers of RBD palmolein and crude palm oil (CPO) to India. During November-May of the oil year 2022-23, Indonesia supplied 17.99 lt of CPO and 9.35 lt of RBD palmolein, followed by Malaysia at 14.62 lt of CPO and 2.23 lt RBD palmolein, and Thailand at 6.61 lt of CPO and 11,499 tonnes of RBD palmolein.
During the period, India imported 11.51 lt of crude soyabean degummed oil from Argentina, followed by 8.07 lt from Brazil; and 4.44 lt of crude sunflower oil from Russia, followed by 3.91 lt from Ukraine, and 1.93 lt from Argentina.
As on June 1, edible oil stocks at ports was estimated at 7.38 lt and pipeline stock at 22.03 lt. Total stock declined to 29.41 lt as on June 1, as against 32.45 lt as on May 1. Mehta attributed this decline in stocks to lower imports during May.
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