India has lowered import taxes on palm and other edible oils to combat high local prices. The basic import duty on crude palm oil (CPO) has been removed and reduced to 7.5% from 20%, resulting in an effective import duty of 8.25% compared to 24.75% previously. The basic duty on refined palm oil has also been reduced to 17.5% from 32.5%, with an effective duty of 19.25%, down from 35.75% earlier. The country, which relies heavily on edible oil imports to meet domestic demand, has been implementing tax reductions and other measures to control retail prices of cooking oil.