16/09/04 PAKISTAN (OILWORLD) - In 2003/04 vegetable oil importrequirements have been curbed by sharply higher domestic production,primarily of rape oil and sun oil. Imports of oils & fats are likely toreach 1.15 Mn T in Oct/Sept 2003/04, down 4% on the year. Owing to higherprice premiums of soya oil versus palm oil, the reduction has come mainlyin soybean oil imports, which will accumulate to only around 50 Thd T thisseason, less than half a year ago. Palm oil imports will remain aboutunchanged at 1.4 Mn T. Imports of rapeseed and sunseed have been on asteep upward trend in 2003/04 and, together with a higher domestic sunseedcrop, lifted seed oil production to new record levels. We estimatecombined production of oils & fats in Pakistan at 1.52 Mn T this season,about 110 Thd T more than the year before. In July/Sept 2004 combinedimports of oils & fats are expected to decline by around 100 Thd T on theyear to an estimated 430-440 Thd T. In 2004/05 the expansion of domesticproduction of vegetable oils will probably slow down. In order to coverthe domestic consumption growth imports of vegetable oils will thereforehave to be stepped up. Crushers are likely to further raise imports andprocessing of rapeseed, which, however, will partly be offset by aprospective reduction in sunseed crushings. The annual growth of domesticdisappearance of oils & fats in Pakistan is expected in the vicinity of90-100 Thd T in 2004/05, similar to what was registered in recent years.As a result, we estimate imports of oils & fats at approximately 1.67 MnT, an increase of 0.1 Mn T on the year.