02/12/2009 (Pakwatan) Islamabad - Pakistan will likely import over 100,000 tonnes of palm oil for December despite high domestic inventories, a leading industry official said on Wednesday, with orders already placed for about 60,000 tonnes.

Pakistan made heavy palm oil purchases of between 150,000 and 175,000 tonnes in September and October and bought another 96,000 tonnes from Malaysia in November that boosted domestic stocks, the official said.

"Pakistan has bought about 60,000 tonnes of palm oil for December and there is a potential of buying another 40,000 to 50,000 tonnes," said Rasheed Janmohammad, vice-chairman of the Pakistan Edible Oil Refiners Association.

"There is a stock of about 170,000 tonnes of palm oil olien and crude oil in our terminals, but Pakistan buying will likely continue in December as long as the international market remains steady."

Palm oil prices remain generally high in the January-March quarter and that will also prompt Pakistani traders to buy more in December, Janmohammad said.

But a lot will depend on availability of vessels as logistics will be tight with the begining of a holiday season in Europe in coming weeks, he said.

Pakistan is expecting about 500,000 tonnes of oil from its domestic cottonseed crop and the output has already started to pour onto the market and will further augment stocks, another trader said.

Pakistan, the world's fourth-largest buyer of vegetable oils, imports a mix of refined and crude palm oil from Malaysia and Indonesia, the world biggest producers.

It consumes about 3 million tonnes of edible oil a year, but produces only 500,000-800,000 tonnes of cottonseed, rapeseed and sunflower, relying on imports to meet about 80 percent of demand.

Janmohammad said Pakistan had separately bought two cargoes of 35,000 tonnes each of canola oilseed from Australia for January shipment, with price ranging from $450 and $460 a tonne.

Pakistan bought about 95,000 tonnes of sunflower and canola oilseed in October.