Palm Oil Price Slips Below 4,500 Ringgit Amid Indonesia’s B50 Push
15/10/2025 (Jakarta Globe), Jakarta - Palm oil futures slipped below 4,500 ringgit per ton on Tuesday, extending losses for a third session as a stronger ringgit and rising inventories weighed on sentiment, even as Indonesia’s push toward higher biodiesel blending promised stronger demand ahead.
Benchmark palm oil settled at 4,451 ringgit ($937) per ton, down 0.2 percent from Monday, according to Trading Economics data. Prices have risen just 0.14 percent over the past month and are up 3.2 percent from a year earlier. Malaysia’s government expects crude palm oil prices to average 3,900–4,100 ringgit per ton in 2026, citing higher global supply and stronger output from rival vegetable oils.
Industry data showed end-September palm oil inventories rose 7.2 percent from August to 2.36 million tonnes, the highest in nearly two years, while Indian imports, the world’s largest market, may drop below 600,000 tonnes in October following a 16 percent fall in September. The decline was cushioned by firm export data, with Malaysian shipments up between 9.9 percent and 19.4 percent in the first ten days of October, according to cargo surveyors.
Meanwhile, Indonesia, the world’s top palm oil producer, is pressing ahead with plans to launch its B50 biodiesel program in 2026, which will use a 50 percent blend of crude palm oil (CPO). Energy Minister Bahlil Lahadalia said the program could create up to 2.5 million new jobs, mainly in plantations and processing facilities, while reducing diesel imports and strengthening local economies.