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Informist, Monday, Jul. 14, 2025

MUMBAI – India's vegetable oil imports in June were 1.55 million tonnes, nearly unchanged on year, according to data released by the Solvent Extractors' Association of India Monday. The imports comprised 1.53 million tonnes of edible oils and 18,497 tonnes of non-edible oils.

In the first eight months of the oil year 2024-25 (Nov-Oct), total vegetable oil imports were at 9.4 million tonnes, down 8% from 10.2 million tonnes a year ago, the association said. In the first half of calendar year 2025, imports of vegetable oils were at 6.57 million tonnes, down 15% from 7.76 million tonnes in Jan-Jun of 2024.

In the first eight months of oil year 2024-25, refined, bleached, and deodorised palmolein imports were at 982,711 tonnes, compared with 1.4 million tonnes in the same period of the previous year. Crude vegetable oil imports in Nov-Jun were at 8.2 million tonnes, compared with 8.7 million tonnes in the corresponding period of the previous year. "The ratio of refined oil decreased to 11% from 14% due to lesser import of RBD palmolein and CPO, while crude palm oil ratio increased to 89% from 86% mainly due to increased import of soybean oil," the association said.

On May 30, the government slashed the basic import duty on crude edible oils--palm, soybean, and sunflower--to 10% from 20%, effectively reducing the total import duty to 16.5% from 27.5%. The widened duty differential of 19.25% between crude and refined oils is a strategic master stroke--reinvigorating domestic refining, reducing dependency on cheap imports, and firmly placing 'Make in India' at the heart of our agri-value chain, the association had said.

Imports of crude palm oil in June were at 788,143 tonnes, compared with 637,897 tonnes a year ago, while crude palm oil imports in Nov-Jun were at 3.3 million tonnes, compared with 4.3 million tonnes a year ago. Imports of refined, bleached, and deodorised palmolein in June were at 163,540 tonnes, compared with 145,237 tonnes a year ago, according to the association. During Nov-Jun, Indonesia and Malaysia were the major suppliers of refined, bleached, and deodorised palmolein and crude palm oil to India.

Edible oil imports during Nov-Jun were at 9.2 million tonnes, compared with 10.1 million tonnes a year ago, according to the association.

Crude sunflower oil imports fell to 216,141 tonnes in June, compared with 465,647 tonnes a year ago, the association said. Crude sunflower oil imports in Nov-Jun fell to 1.9 million tonnes from 2.5 million tonnes a year ago. Soft oil imports jumped to 4.9 million tonnes in Nov-Jun from 4.3 million tonnes a year ago. "The share of palm oil sharply decreased to 47% from 57% while Soft Oils increased to 53% from 43%," the association said.

Crude soyoil imports in June rose to 359,504 tonnes from 275,700 tonnes a year ago. Crude soyoil imports in Nov-Jun rose to 3.0 million tonnes from 1.9 million tonnes a year ago. During Nov-Jun, India imported 1.8 million tonnes of crude soybean degummed oil from Argentina, followed by 663,776 tonnes from Brazil, 188,384 tonnes from the US, and 162,347 tonnes from Russia. Crude sunflower oil was mainly imported from Russia, Ukraine and Argentina.

As of Jul. 1, the country's total edible oil stock was at 1.6 million tonnes, including 740,000 tonnes at ports and 828,000 tonnes in the pipeline. At the same time last year, the country's total edible oil stock was 2.6 million tonnes, including 713,000 tonnes at ports and 1.9 million tonnes in the pipeline, according to data released by the SEA.

The early onset of the southwest monsoon in key oilseed-growing regions has significantly boosted kharif sowing, especially for groundnut and soybean. As of Jul 11, the country's total kharif oilseed acreage stood at 1.37 million hectares, down 2% from 1.4 million hectares a year ago. Total acreage of groundnut was 3.3 million hectares and soybean was 9.9 million hectares.

In view of the rising prices of edible oils, the government may consider releasing a substantial part of the country's edible oil stock into the market over the next three months, ahead of the upcoming harvest. The National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India Ltd., Haryana State Cooperative Supply and Marketing Federation Ltd., and National Commodity and Derivatives Exchange Ltd. currently hold about 1.4 million tonnes of soybean and a similar quantity of rapeseed, according to the SEA.

The following table details edible oil imports in April, in tonnes, compared with year-ago levels, with the change in percentage, according to data from the SEA:

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Reported by Taniva Singha Roy

Edited by Deepshikha Bhardwaj and Rajeev Pai

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