India reduced imports of sunflower and rapeseed oil in favor of palm oil

According to dealers, India’s palm oil imports increased slightly in November as low prices prompted refiners to increase purchases and reduce imports of more expensive oils, such as soybean and sunflower, Reuters reports. India’s increased palm oil imports could help Indonesia and Malaysia, its leading palm oil producers, reduce inventories and support benchmark Malaysian palm oil futures, while simultaneously putting pressure on U.S. soybean oil futures. According to dealer estimates, India’s palm oil imports in November rose to 630,000 tonnes, up 4.6% from October. Meanwhile, soybean oil imports fell by 12% to 400,000 tonnes, while sunflower oil imports fell by 44%, reaching a two-year low of 145,000 tonnes. India’s total edible oil imports in November fell by 11.5% month-on-month to a seven-month low of 1.18 million tonnes. The import data includes approximately 30,000 tonnes of soybean oil imported duty-free across land borders from Nepal. Indian buyers are increasing their ...