India palm oil imports fall to one-year low in April on weak demand

India's palm oil imports fell 27% to a one-year low in April, as sluggish demand from institutional buyers and a recent price rally that eroded its discount to rival oils prompted refiners to curb purchases, five dealers said.

Lower imports by the world's biggest importer of vegetable oils could increase stocks in top producers Indonesia and Malaysia and weigh on benchmark Malaysian palm oil futures FCPOc3.

Palm oil imports fell to 505,000 metric tons in April, the lowest since April 2025, down from 689,462 tons in March, per dealer estimates.

Soyoil imports rose 24% month-on-month in April to 355,000 tons, the highest in four months, while sunflower oil shipments more than doubled to 435,000 tons, the highest in 22 months.

India's overall edible oil imports rose 10.4% from March to 1.3 million tons in April, the highest since January 2026, as sunflower oil and soyoil purchases jumped, estimates showed.

The figures exclude duty-free shipments arriving via land borders from Nepal, the dealers said.

The Solvent Extractors' Association of India is set to release its April import data by mid-May.

Eateries and restaurants are facing cooking gas shortages, effectively reducing their palm oil consumption, a trend reflected in import numbers, said Sandeep Bajoria, chief executive of Sunvin Group, a vegetable oil brokerage and consultancy firm.

These restaurants serve popular dishes such as samosas and chole bhature, which are typically deep-fried.

India, the world's second-largest cooking gas importer, is grappling with its worst gas crisis in decades, as the government cuts supplies to industry and raises commercial cylinder prices to shield households from shortages.

Sunflower oil imports jumped in April as refining margins were higher than rival oils, with Indian buyers placing orders ahead of disruptions linked to the Iran war, said Rajesh Patel, managing partner at edible oil trader GGN Research at Rajkot, Gujarat.

India's April palm oil imports hit one-year low on weak demand https://reut.rs/3QOg3nJ

-Reporting by Rajendra Jadhav; Editing by Harikrishnan Nair/Reuters