32.44% dip in India’s edible oil imports in March

The provisional data released by the Solvent Extractors Association of India (SEA), has revealed India’s edible oil imports declined 32.44% to 9,41,219 tonne in March due to government restrictions on purchase of refined palm oil from the overseas market.

India is the world’s leading vegetable oil buyer and the share of palm oil is more than 60 per cent of the country’s total vegetable oil imports. Last year in March, the country imported 13,93,255 tonne of the commodity. The trade body also stated that there was a 90% fall in import of RBD palmolein at 30,850 tonne in March this year, as compared to 3,12,673 tonne in the year-ago period. Meanwhile, import of crude palm oil (CPO) and crude palm kernel oil (CPKO) have declined 38% to 3,04,458 tonne during March this year from 4,89,770 tonne a year ago. Further, soyabean oil import declined marginally to 2,92,410 tonne in March this year from 2,92,925 tonne in same period last year, while that of sunflower oil to Rs 2,96,501 tonne from 2,97,887 tonne in the said period.