Palm oil imports rise 21% in March to 5,50,000 tonnes
Palm oil imports rise 21% in March to 5,50,000 tonnes
India’s palm oil imports jumped 21% in March from the previous month as traders
moved to secure alternatives to sunflower oil that can no longer be bought from
Ukraine, four dealers told Reuters.
A poor soyoil crop in South America, meanwhile has limited
India’s ability to rely on that edible oil as a substitute for
Ukrainian sunflower oil.
Indian demand contributed to the palm oil price, as
indicated by the futures contract, reaching an all-time
record of 7,268 ringgit per tonne on March 9, although it has
since fallen to 5,741 ringgit per tonne.
In March, 550,000 tonnes of palm oil landed in India, up
from 454,794 tonnes in February, said a Mumbai-based dealer with
a global trading firm.
Even in April, palm oil imports will remain robust, as
sunflower oil imports are expected to fall because of Russia’s
invasion of Ukraine, said Govindbhai Patel, managing director of
trading firm G.G. Patel & Nikhil Research Co.
More than 90% of India’s imported sunflower oil usually
comes from Ukraine and Russia, mainly Ukraine.
India imported 2,10,000 tonnes of sunflower oil in March, up
from 1,52,220 tonnes in February, helped by the arrival of a few
ships that had left Ukraine before the war, Mr. Patel said.
Now that Ukrainian sunflower oil supplies have ceased,
Indian refiners have been trying to import more from Russia and
Argentina, said Sandeep Bajoria, chief executive of Sunvin
Group, a vegetable oil brokerage and consultancy.
“But there are limitations. We cannot import more than
1,00,000 tonnes per month in Ukraine’s absence. Demand is there
for 2,00,000 tonnes,” Mr. Bajoria said.
India has contracted for 45,000 tonnes of Russian sunflower
oil at a record high price for shipments in April as edible oil
prices in the local market have surged because of the cessation
of Ukrainian supply.
The Solvent Extractors’ Association of India, a trade body
based in the commercial capital of Mumbai, is likely to publish
March’s import figure in mid-April.
India imported about 3,10,000 tonnes of soyoil in March, 18%
less than in February, dealers said.
India buys palm oil from top producers Indonesia and
Malaysia and soyoil mainly from Argentina and Brazil.
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