MARKET DEVELOPMENT
Cooking Oil Imports by India Climb to One-Year High on Tax Bets
Cooking Oil Imports by India Climb to One-Year High on Tax Bets
14/01/2014 (Bloomberg) - Cooking oil imports by India, the world’s second-biggest user, jumped to the highest level in almost a year as traders accelerated shipments before a tax increase and a decline in sunflower oil spurred demand.
Purchases, including those for industrial use, increased 18 percent to 1.07 million metric tons last month from a year earlier, the most since January 2013, the Solvent Extractors Association of India said in an e-mailed statement today. Palm oil imports surged 9 percent to 863,205 tons, more than the median estimate for a 4.4 percent jump to 800,000 tons in a Bloomberg survey published on Jan. 9.
India increased the duty on imports of refined cooking oils to 10 percent from 7.5 percent last week to guard domestic refiners and oilseed farmers from a surge in shipments of processed palm oil from Indonesia and Malaysia. Purchases this year may reach a record for a third year as increasing incomes and an expanding population boost demand for everything from cookies to noodles and detergents.
“Importers were anticipating an increase in duty on refined oils,” B.V. Mehta, executive director of the industry group, said by phone. “There is also anticipation that palm oil prices will rise on an expected fall in production in Indonesia and Malaysia and an increase in use of palm oil as biodiesel.”
Futures in Malaysia had their first advance since 2010 last year on speculation that output from Indonesia, the largest producer, will drop for the first time since 1998. The contract for delivery in March fell as much as 0.9 percent to 2,495 ringgit ($765) a ton on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives, the lowest price for the most active contract since Oct. 29. Futures advanced 9.1 percent last year.
Cooking oil stockpiles at ports and in the pipeline to India were about 1.59 million tons as of Jan. 1 compared with 1.47 million tons on Dec. 1, association data showed. Imports in the two months through December climbed 25 percent to 2.01 million tons, the association said.
Crude soybean oil imports jumped to 53,500 tons in December from 21,960 tons a year earlier, while sunflower oil purchases surged to 107,149 tons from 69,000 tons, the association said. India meets more than 50 percent of its annual cooking oil demand through imports.
Purchases, including those for industrial use, increased 18 percent to 1.07 million metric tons last month from a year earlier, the most since January 2013, the Solvent Extractors Association of India said in an e-mailed statement today. Palm oil imports surged 9 percent to 863,205 tons, more than the median estimate for a 4.4 percent jump to 800,000 tons in a Bloomberg survey published on Jan. 9.
India increased the duty on imports of refined cooking oils to 10 percent from 7.5 percent last week to guard domestic refiners and oilseed farmers from a surge in shipments of processed palm oil from Indonesia and Malaysia. Purchases this year may reach a record for a third year as increasing incomes and an expanding population boost demand for everything from cookies to noodles and detergents.
“Importers were anticipating an increase in duty on refined oils,” B.V. Mehta, executive director of the industry group, said by phone. “There is also anticipation that palm oil prices will rise on an expected fall in production in Indonesia and Malaysia and an increase in use of palm oil as biodiesel.”
Futures in Malaysia had their first advance since 2010 last year on speculation that output from Indonesia, the largest producer, will drop for the first time since 1998. The contract for delivery in March fell as much as 0.9 percent to 2,495 ringgit ($765) a ton on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives, the lowest price for the most active contract since Oct. 29. Futures advanced 9.1 percent last year.
Cooking oil stockpiles at ports and in the pipeline to India were about 1.59 million tons as of Jan. 1 compared with 1.47 million tons on Dec. 1, association data showed. Imports in the two months through December climbed 25 percent to 2.01 million tons, the association said.
Crude soybean oil imports jumped to 53,500 tons in December from 21,960 tons a year earlier, while sunflower oil purchases surged to 107,149 tons from 69,000 tons, the association said. India meets more than 50 percent of its annual cooking oil demand through imports.