NEW DELHI, Jan 3 (Bernama) -- The base import prices of palm oil and soya oil have been left unchanged by the Indian government to fight inflation, a Finance Ministry official has been quoted as saying.

Used to calculate tariffs paid by importers, the base prices have not been revised for several weeks, says a report in the business daily the Economic Times.

Another report in the paper said prices of edible oil in India are likely to increase in view of an early "Holi" festival, insufficient mustard crop and higher world prices.

Further, says another report, vegetable oil imports may face turbulent waters for the next couple of weeks after a new international shipping rule that comes into force from Jan 1, stipulating that it can only be transported in double hull and double bottom tanker ships.

Indian importers fear that it could lead to as much as a US$20 a tonne hike in freight costs in the short term, the report adds.

-- BERNAMA