India's May palm oil imports jump to six-month high
MUMBAI: India's palm oil imports in May surged to a six-month high, as lower inventories and the tropical oil's discount to rival soyoil and sunflower oil prompted refiners to increase purchases, according to five dealers.
Higher palm oil and soyoil imports by India, the world's biggest buyer of vegetable oils, could support Malaysian palm oil prices and US soyoil futures.
Palm oil imports in May surged 87% month-on-month to 600,000 metric tons, the highest since November 2024, according to estimates from dealers.
India imported an average of more than 750,000 tons of palm oil each month during the marketing year that ended in October 2024, said the Solvent Extractors' Association of India, which is set to publish its May import data by mid-June.
Palm oil imports fell sharply from January to April due to its premium over soyoil, which led to lower stock levels in India, said Rajesh Patel, managing partner at GGN Research, an edible oil trader. 'Since palm oil started selling at a discount last month, Indian buyers have gone back to palm oil,' Patel said.
India's vegetable oil stocks fell to 1.35 million tons as of May 1, the lowest since July 2020, according to SEA data. Soyoil imports in May rose 10% month-on-month to 398,000 tons, the highest since January, dealers said. Sunflower oil imports, meanwhile, edged higher by 2% to 184,000 metric tons.
Higher imports of palm oil and soyoil lifted India's total edible oil imports in May by 37% from a month ago to 1.18 million tons, the highest since December, according to dealers' estimates. Palm oil imports are likely to rise further to 750,000 tons in June and 850,000 tons in July, Sandeep Bajoria, CEO of Sunvin Group, a vegetable oil brokerage.
The recent correction in palm oil prices and reduction in import duty is likely to boost consumption in India, Bajoria said. India halved the basic import tax on crude edible oils to 10% on Friday to bring down food prices and help the local refining industry.
India buys palm oil mainly from Indonesia and Malaysia, while it imports soyoil and sunflower oil from Argentina, Brazil, Russia and Ukraine. Nepal's edible oil imports were 132,000 tons in May, up from 87,000 tons in April, GGN Research estimated.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Business Recorder
4 hours ago
- Business Recorder
France's Dassault and India's Tata to produce Rafale fuselage in Hyderabad
NEW DELHI: France's Dassault Aviation and India's Tata Advanced Systems have agreed to manufacture the fuselage of the Rafale fighter aircraft in India, the companies said on Thursday, the first time it will be produced outside France. India, the world's biggest arms importer, has been looking to step up domestic production and boost defence exports, which jumped 12% in the fiscal year to end-March, to $2.76 billion. Tata will set up a production facility in the southern city of Hyderabad to manufacture key structural sections of the Rafale as part of the agreement, the companies said in a statement. The first fuselage sections are expected to roll off the assembly line in the 2028 financial year, with the facility expected to deliver up to two complete fuselages per month, they said. After Pakistan downed Indian jets, Indonesia weighs purchase of China's J-10s The statement did not say how much the deal was worth nor whether the finish products would be for domestic use or export, but Tata Advanced Systems said on X that the fuselage would be 'for India and other global markets'. The Indian Air Force currently operates 36 Rafale fighters. India also signed a deal in April with France – its second-largest arms supplier - to buy 26 naval versions of the jets for $7 billion, which are expected to be delivered by 2030. The South Asian nation is looking to modernise its military and boost domestic weapons' production, particularly to strengthen its defences against neighbours Pakistan and China. India used fighter jets in four-days of fierce clashes with Pakistan last month, after a deadly attack by assailants that killed 26 men in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK). Pakistan's defence minister had said three of India's Rafale fighter jets had been shot down during the fighting but did not share any evidence. One US official told Reuters that at least one downed Indian aircraft was a Rafale. Dassault Aviation had declined to comment. India's chief of defence staff told Reuters in an interview last week that India suffered losses in the air, but declined to give details.
Business Recorder
6 hours ago
- Business Recorder
Apple gives Tata India iPhone repair business as partnership expands
BENGALURU: Apple has brought in Tata Group to handle repairs for iPhones and MacBook devices in its fast-growing Indian market, signalling the Indian conglomerate's deepening role in the U.S. tech giant's supply chain, two people familiar with the matter said. As Apple looks beyond China for manufacturing, Tata has fast emerged as its key supplier and already assembles iPhones for local and foreign markets at three facilities in south India, with one of them also making some iPhone components. In its latest partnership expansion, Tata is taking over the mandate from an Indian unit of Taiwan's Wistron, ICT Service Management Solutions, and will carry out such after-sales repairs from its Karnataka iPhone assembly campus, both sources said. The market for repairs is only going to boom in India, the world's second-biggest smartphone market, as iPhone sales skyrocket. Counterpoint Research estimates around 11 million iPhones were sold in India last year, giving Apple a 7% market share, compared to just 1% in 2020. Apple airlifts 600 tons of iPhones from India 'to beat' Trump tariffs, sources say The latest contract award signals Apple's growing confidence on Tata as it hopes to win more business from the world's most valuable smartphone company. 'Tata's deepening partnership with Apple could also pave the groundwork for Apple directly selling refurbished devices in India, like how it does in the United States currently,' said Prabhu Ram, a vice president at Cybermedia Research. The takeover from ICT by Tata is currently ongoing, both sources said, who declined to be named as they were not authorized to speak on the matter. Apple and Wistron did not respond to requests for comment, while a spokesperson for Tata declined to comment. While Apple's official service centres across India can do basic repairs, they would now ship phones and laptops to Tata's facility for more complex issues. Wistron's ICT however will continue to service other clients excluding Apple, one of the sources said. Amid an impending threat of U.S. President Donald Trump's tariffs on China, India is also emerging as a favoured destination for iPhone exports. Apple CEO Tim Cook has said the bulk of iPhones sold in the United States during June quarter will be made at factories in India.
Business Recorder
6 hours ago
- Business Recorder
Asia rice: Indian rates fall to two-year low on robust rains, weaker rupee
Indian rice export prices fell to their lowest level in two years this week due to depreciation of the rupee and expectations that a second year of robust monsoon rains would lead to another bumper crop, while Thailand saw muted demand. India's 5% broken parboiled variety was quoted at $380-$386 per ton, down from the last week's $382-$389. Indian 5% broken white rice was priced at $373 to $378 per ton this week. 'India is poised to harvest another bumper crop if monsoon rains remain conducive. This will add to already overflowing stocks,' said a Kolkata-based trader. The country last month raised the price at which it will buy the new-season common rice paddy variety from local farmers by 3%, the lowest increase in five years, as New Delhi struggles to manage overflowing granaries after last year's record harvest. Meanwhile, Thailand's 5% broken rice held at $410 per tonne, from $405-$410 per tonne last week. Asia rice: Rates subdued across top exporting hubs on weak demand, ample supply 'Demand is not good at all,' while supply has been ample, said a Bangkok-based trader. 'The Philippines and Indonesia are not buying large lots this year.' Vietnam's 5% broken rice was offered at $396 per metric ton, unchanged from a week ago, according to Vietnam Food Association. 'The Philippines is seeking to diversify its sources of rice supplies and this might have a certain impact on Vietnam as the Philippines is the largest buyer,' a trader based in Ho Chi Minh City said. The trader, however, said Vietnam is also seeking to increase the proportion of high-quality rice for markets such as Japan and Europe at higher prices. 'We have noticed that the Philippines has cut down on their purchases from Vietnam,' another trader based in the city said. State media reported on Thursday Vietnam's rice exports in May were estimated at 1.1 million tons, raising total shipments in the January-May period to 4.5 million tons.
