NEW DELHI (July 13): India imported 275,915 tonnes of palm oil from Malaysia in June, according to the latest data from an industry group.

The country’s total edible oil imports last month were 969,431 tonnes, with palm oil’s share being 61%, the Mumbai-based Solvent Extractors’ Association of India (SEA) said.

Overall edible oil imports dropped 20% in June from the previous month due to higher domestic stocks, it said.

Imports from Malaysia were 268,715 tonnes of crude palm oil (CPO), 3,200 tonnes of refined, bleached and deodorised (RBD) palm olein and 4,000 tonnes of crude palm kernel oil.

India is likely to buy more refined palm oil after the government last month lifted restrictions on its imports for six months, a move seen aimed at cooling local consumer prices of edible oil.

It also cut import tax on CPO by five per cent until end-September.

The SEA, which represents vegetable oil refiners and traders, expects increased imports of refined palm in the coming months at the cost of CPO.

The revised rate of effective import duty, including surcharges, is 30.25% on CPO and 41.25% on RBD palm olein.

Source : The Edge Markets