NEW DELHI: India imported 402,797 tonnes of crude palm oil (CPO) from Malaysia last month — about 20% more compared with November 2020 as the import duty reduction boosted Indian purchases.
Overall, India’s edible oil imports in December exceeded 1.3 million tonnes, comprising 770,392 tonnes of palm oil, 322,809 tonnes of soybean oil, and 234,960 tonnes of sunflower oil, according to Mumbai-based trade body Solvent Extractors’ Association (SEA) of India.
Indian importers’ demand for CPO rose after the Malaysian government reduced import tax from 37.5% to 27.5%, with effect from Nov 27, 2020.
“This reduction of duty on CPO has encouraged larger imports of palm oil,” SEA said.
In November 2020, India imported 333,383 tonnes of Malaysia’s CPO.