INDIA‘s palm oil imports from Malaysia have turned negligible, according to the most recent monthly data released by a trade group.
The country imported 540,470 Htonnes of palm oil in February, but only 5,890 tonnes were from Malaysia, according to the Solvent Extractors’ Association (SEA) of India.
Indian palm oil imports from Malaysia amounted to 136,219 tonnes in January and 110,562 tonnes in December 2019.
Although there is no official restriction on buying Malaysian palm oil, New Delhi is upset with Malaysia over the latter’s position on the Kashmir dispute and is seen discouraging importers from dealing with Malaysian companies.
India’s Jan 8 decision to place RBD (refined, bleached and deodorised) palm olein under the “restricted” list of goods, requiring importers to apply for permits, has drastically reduced refined palm oil imports.
The move, in particular, affects Malaysian companies even though it is not country-specific.
Last month, India’s total refined palm oil imports were just 33,677 tonnes compared with 94,816 in December.
The overall share of palm oil in February also dropped versus soft oils such as soybean and sunflower, constituting 50 per cent of about million tonnes of overall vegetable oil imports. – March 14, 2020, Bernama
