India's refined palm oil imports could more than double in the year to October 31, 2012 and rise to 2.4 million tonnes as a result of an export tax change by leading producer Indonesia, a leading trader and edible oils industry expert said on Wednesday.
Total edible oil imports will increase 13.1 percent to 9.5 million tonnes in 2011/12, as rapeseed output drops while demand rises, Govindbhai G.Patel, managing partner of GG Patel & Nikhil Research Co, told Reuters.
"The bulk of the imports will be palm oils with the share of the refined variant set to double this year," Patel said in a telephone interview from Kuala Lumpur.
"The lower Indonesian export tax will push up imports of refined palm olein to 2.3-2.4 million tonnes in 2011/12." India is the world's biggest buyer of vegetable oil, importing mainly palm oil from Indonesia and Malaysia and a small quantity of soyoil from Brazil and Argentina.
India imported 1.08 million tonnes of refined palm oil in 2010/11.
Demand for edible oils is rising at around 3-4 percent per year, faster than population growth, as increased incomes in an economy growing at around seven percent encourage people to indulge in high-calorie, fried foods.
Patel said imports of crude palm oil would be slightly lower at 5.1 million tonnes this year from 5.5 million tonnes last year.
But total palm oil imports - spurred by the surge in refined purchases -- would rise 15.4 percent this year to 7.5 million tonnes from 2010/11 levels.
Patel, who is also the managing partner of major trading firm Dipak Enterprise, is an industry veteran who has headed several trade organisations during a career spanning more than 30 years.
