India's Import Duty Revision May Reduce Edible Oil Imports from Nepal

03-Jun-2025 09:00 AM

India's Import Duty Revision May Reduce Edible Oil Imports from Nepal
★ The Indian government recently reduced the import duty on crude palm oil from 20% to 10%, increasing the duty gap between crude and refined oils. This is likely to impact edible oil imports from Nepal.
★ Over the last 10 months, Nepal imported:
540,000 tonnes of crude soybean oil and exported 374,000 tonnes of refined soybean oil.
166,000 tonnes of crude sunflower oil and exported 457,000 tonnes of refined sunflower oil.
32,318 tonnes of crude palm oil, exporting 6,685 tonnes of refined palm oil.
★ These exports were primarily to India under SAFTA (South Asian Free Trade Area), which exempts import duties, making it a duty-free route.
★ With this new decision, imports from Nepal may decline, but crude oil imports from other countries may rise, as the duty structure now favors crude over refined oils.