Import of edible oils expected to increase by 30 percent in June due to palm oil
02-Jul-2025 04:38 PM
Mumbai. Although the monthly report of the Solvent Extractors Association of India (SIA) is expected to be released in mid-July with detailed information on edible oil imports during June, estimates by leading industry experts and trade analysts suggest that total edible oil imports rose by 30 percent in June 2025 to 15.30 lakh tonnes compared to May. This marks the highest monthly import volume since November 2024, driven largely by a sharp increase in palm oil imports.
Industry analysts estimate that palm oil imports surged by 61 percent in June, reaching 9.53 lakh tonnes—the highest in the last 11 months.
During January to April, palm oil imports had remained subdued but began increasing from May. The rise is attributed to two main factors: a significant decline in domestic palm oil stocks and a drop of about $100 per tonne in its price compared to soybean and sunflower oil.
The total effective import duty on crude palm oil in India was also reduced from 27.5 percent to 16.5 percent, encouraging more imports.
Sunflower oil imports are estimated to have increased by 18 percent in June to 2.16 lakh tonnes, while soybean oil imports declined by 9 percent to 3.63 lakh tonnes due to high international prices.
Overall, the estimated edible oil import in June stood at 15.30 lakh tonnes—comprising 9.53 lakh tonnes of palm oil, 3.63 lakh tonnes of soybean oil, and 2.16 lakh tonnes of sunflower oil—30 percent higher than in May.
Although palm oil production remains strong in leading producer-exporters like Indonesia and Malaysia, its prices are expected to stay firm due to solid export performance.
However, rising prices have led to the cancellation of some Indian import deals for palm oil scheduled for shipment between July and September.
Meanwhile, due to the high 35.75 percent customs duty on refined edible oils, imports from Nepal have dropped significantly.
In May, India imported 1.55 lakh tonnes of edible oil from Nepal, which is estimated to have fallen to around 75 thousand tonnes in June.