Malaysia could be India’s top palm oil supplier

Malaysia is all set to replace Indonesia as the top palm oil exporter to India in 2019. This is due to the fact that New Delhi has been charging lower import tax (50% from the earlier 54%) on refined palm oil shipments from Malaysia. India is said to be world’s biggest importer of palm oil. Malaysian shipments, due to a Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement, attract 45% duty, making it the top oil supplier for India.

It is estimated that New Delhi’s refined palm oil imports are likely to rise to 3 million tonnes in the 2018/19 marketing year. This is a 43% rise from a last ago. “We are expecting the market share to remain the same in the second half,” opined Mohd Bakke Salleh, chairman of the Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB).