Overview

• The basic customs duty on crude palm, soybean and sunflower oils has been reduced from 20% to 10% effective May 30, bringing total import charges down to 16.5% after surcharges.
• The basic duty on refined edible oils remains at 32.5%, keeping their effective tariff at 35.75% and preserving the incentive to import crude rather than finished products.
• Industry bodies including the Solvent Extractors Association of India and the Indian Vegetable Oil Producers’ Association said the wider duty differential will shift demand toward crude imports and boost local refining capacity.
• The government expects the move to ease retail cooking oil prices and tame food inflation by making crude oils more competitively priced for domestic processors.
• Oil palm growers and the National Oilpalm Farmers Association have urged a rollback, warning the cut could discourage cultivation and harm farmer incomes.