India’s palm oil imports rose 6% in April from the previous month, as traders increased purchases of tropical oil after prices of rival soyoil and sunflower oil jumped due to limited supplies, a leading trade body said on Friday.

The higher purchases of palm oil by India, the world’s biggest importer of edible oils, could support Malaysian palm oil futures. FCPOc3.

In April, 572,508 tonnes of palm oil landed in India, up from 539,793 tonnes in March, the Solvent Extractors’ Association of India (SEA) said in a statement.

India’s sunflower oil imports plunged to 54,426 tonnes last month, down from 212,484 tonnes in March, as supplies from top supplier Ukraine have stopped following the war, it said.

The country’s soyoil imports in April fell to 273,151 tonnes from 299,421 tonnes a month ago, the SEA said.

“In May, even palm oil imports will fall because of Indonesia’s move to ban the exports. Supplies situation will remain tight,” said a Mumbai-based dealer with a global trading firm.

Indonesia’s wider palm oil export ban has trapped at least 290,000 tonnes of the edible oil meant to be headed to India at ports and oil mills in the world’s top producer.

India buys palm oil from top producers Indonesia and Malaysia and soyoil, mainly from Argentina and Brazil.
Source: Reuters (Reporting by Rajendra Jadhav; Editing by Rashmi Aich)