In the ongoing agricultural season, India is poised to reduce its import of vegetable oils by 5%, according to projections from the Indian Vegetable Oil Producers’ Association (IVPA). This reduction will bring imports down from 17.06 million tons in the previous season to an estimated 16.2 million tons.
One significant shift anticipated is a potential decrease in the share of palm oil within the total import volume. In the 2022/23 fiscal year, palm oil accounted for 60% of total imports, but this figure may drop to 54%, or even as low as 50%, in the current season due to evolving price dynamics.
Experts forecast that crude palm oil prices will range between $900-940 per ton CIF from April to June this year, with a further decline to $840-900 per ton CIF from July to September. Soybean oil prices are expected to fluctuate between $900-960 per ton CIF from April to September, while sunflower oil prices are projected to be $890-940 per ton CIF from April to June and $900-950 per ton CIF from July to September.
In light of these price differentials, India is expected to increase its import of soybean oil between April and September 2024, taking advantage of its competitive pricing in the market.