Imports of edible oil into India since the start of the season have declined by 5% compared to last season

Imports of edible oils into India fell by 5% to 8.67 million tonnes in the first seven months of FY 2023/24 (November-October) compared to the same period of the previous marketing year. B.V. Mehta, executive director of the Producers Association of India (SEA), told FE that the decline in imports this year was due to high yields of mustard and soybeans in the domestic market and rising global prices. Palm oil imports for the period from November to May (2023-24) amounted to 4.97 million tons, which is 7% less than last year. Soybean oil imports were 1.59 million tonnes, down 22% year-on-year, while sunflower oil imports rose 20% to 1.99 million tonnes this year. Floods in Brazil and a strike by workers in Argentina led to a sharp rise in global soybean oil prices, and sunflower supplies from Russia and Ukraine were reduced due to the "dead season". However, the prices of palm oil, which is the main imported product, remained more or less stable in the international and domestic ...