Indonesia’s February palm oil exports hit 4-month high on tax cut

Indonesia’s crude and refined palm oil exports surged 62.2 per cent in February from a month ago to reach a four-month high, the statistics bureau said on Monday, as Jakarta’s move to lower export taxes attracted buyers away from Malaysia. Higher palm oil exports from Indonesia, the world’s biggest producer of the tropical oil, will help in bringing down stocks and support prices that are currently holding a premium over rival soyoil. Indonesia exported 2.06 million metric tons of crude and refined palm oil in February, the highest since October, the bureau data showed. Exports were up 45.1 per cent from February 2024. The bureau’s data excludes palm kernel oil, oleochemicals and biodiesel. Indonesia’s palm oil association GAPKI usually releases its own data at a later date, which cover more products and so has different export figures. The decrease in export taxes, which resulted in Indonesian palm oil prices falling below Malaysian levels, sped up exports in February, said ...