NEW DELHI – India may reduce its import tax on palm oil to rein in local consumer prices of cooking oil, according to a media report.
The government is mulling lowering the effective duty on crude palm oil (CPO), soybean oil and sunflower oil to 24.75% from the current 30.25%, as well as those of refined palm oil and soybean oil to 31.75% from 41.25%, the Economic Times reported.
“This is a crackdown on food inflation and a step to ensure that prices during the festive season remain under control,” it quoted an unnamed official as saying.
India’s consumer inflation is being exacerbated by rising transport fuel costs and cooking oil prices.
In June, the government slashed the base import duty on CPO from 15% to 10% for three months, lowering the effective duty – which includes agriculture and social welfare levies – to 30.25% from 35.75%.
It had also allowed imports of refined palm oil until end-December.
Palm oil from Malaysia and Indonesia account for a significant portion of India’s edible oil imports.
According to the country’s Agriculture Ministry, India imported 13.35 million tonnes of edible oil and domestically produced 12.47 million tonnes during its 2020-21 fiscal year. – Bernama, September 8, 2021
