Palm oil imports increased by 51%
A major change has been seen in India’s edible oil market in the month of January. There has been a sudden huge surge in the import of palm oil in the country. According to the latest data released by the Solvent Extractors Association of India (SEA) on Friday, palm oil imports in January have increased by 51 percent compared to the previous month. This is the highest level in the last four months.
India is the largest buyer of vegetable oils worldwide, hence India’s purchases have a direct impact on global markets. The reason for this increased demand is that refiners are now getting palm oil at much cheaper prices than soybean oil. Seeing this huge difference in prices, Indian traders have started increasing the stock of palm oil.
Why was there such a bumper purchase of palm oil?
Business mathematics is very simple, where there is more profit, there is more business. The total import of palm oil in January was 7,66,384 metric tons, which is the highest since September 2025. A dealer of a Mumbai-based global trade house said that at present palm oil is cheaper by more than $ 100 per ton compared to soybean oil.
This is the big reason which has attracted Indian refiners. When such a huge discount is available on an oil, it is natural that buyers will leave expensive options and turn to affordable options. Market experts believe that this figure may increase further in February and imports are expected to cross 8 lakh tonnes.
Why did we turn away from soybean and sunflower oil?
While on one hand there is a boom in palm oil, on the other hand there has been a huge decline in the import of soybean and sunflower oil. Statistics show that the import of soybean oil has fallen by more than 44 percent to 2,78,888 tonnes. This is the lowest level since June 2024. Similarly, the import of sunflower oil has also declined by about 23.8 percent to 2,66,575 tonnes.
India’s total edible oil imports fell 3.7 percent to 1.31 million tonnes in January due to the move away from expensive sunflower and soybean oils. This simply means that the Indian market is now becoming more dependent on cheap palm oil instead of expensive oils to meet its needs.
Stock of vegetable oils decreased in India
If seen domestically, the stock of vegetable oils in India has decreased in recent months due to less imports. By February 1, the stock of vegetable oil in India fell to 1.75 million tonnes, which was 2.18 million tonnes at the same time a year ago. Amidst decreasing stocks and increasing demand, refiners had no option but to increase imports.
The effect of this aggressive purchasing by India will also be visible in the international market. This will reduce the stocks accumulated in top producing countries like Indonesia and Malaysia, which will support Malaysian palm oil futures. On the other hand, there is every possibility of increasing pressure on the future prices of American soybean oil.
Let us tell you that India buys its palm oil mainly from Indonesia and Malaysia, while soybean and sunflower oil are imported from Argentina, Brazil, Russia and Ukraine.
