India's vegetable oil imports (edible and non-edible) fell 29% year-on-year to 11.46 lakh tonnes in June 2026, reaching the lowest level since the start of the current oil year, compared to 16.16 lakh tonnes in June 2025, according to the Solvent Extractors' Association of India (SEA). The June imports comprised 11.11 lakh tonnes of edible oils and 35,427 tonnes of non-edible oils. On a month-on-month basis, edible oil imports also declined from 13.39 lakh tonnes in May 2026 to 11.11 lakh tonnes in June 2026. The decline was primarily driven by reduced demand for palm oil and soybean oil, with BV Mehta, Executive Director of SEA, attributing the drop to vanishing price discounts of palm oil against soft oils, which fell to under $50 per tonne. Despite the June dip, cumulative imports for the current oil year (November 2025-June 2026) rose to 105.7 lakh tonnes from 99.55 lakh tonnes a year earlier, as the SEA noted that while vegetable oil imports have remained higher overall during the current oil year, the substantial decline in June has moderated the pace of cumulative growth.
Palm oil imports experienced a significant decline to 487,000 tonnes in June 2026, representing a 10.5% decrease from 546,000 tonnes in May 2026 and 952,000 tonnes in June 2025, as reported by Business Standard. Crude palm oil imports specifically fell to 488,863 tonnes from 546,456 tonnes in May. The drop was attributed to the vanishing price discount of palm oil against soft oils, which fell to under $50 per tonne. Mehta explained that the decline was a ripple effect of simultaneous biofuel mandates introduced by Indonesia, Malaysia and the US, which are pulling millions of tonnes of vegetable oils out of the food economy into the fuel economy, driving up global spot prices. India primarily imports palm oil from Indonesia and Malaysia, with the SEA noting that India imported 19.04 lakh tonnes of palm oil from Indonesia and 19.81 lakh tonnes from Malaysia during the first eight months of oil year 2025-26.
Soybean oil imports declined to 381,000 tonnes in June 2026 from 494,000 tonnes in May 2026, experiencing a 23% decrease, according to Business Standard. The decline was caused by the vanishing price discount of palm oil against soft oils, which dropped to under $50 per tonne. Despite the overall decline, sunflower oil imports showed a positive trend, rising to 242,870 tonnes in June from 195,726 tonnes in May. India primarily imports soybean oil from Argentina and Brazil, with the SEA noting that imports of refined cooking oils were nil for a second straight month, reflecting the shift toward crude oil imports. India imported 3.68 lakh tonnes of refined oil and 100.18 lakh tonnes of crude edible oil during the first eight months of oil year 2025-26, compared to 14.99 lakh tonnes of refined oil and 82.29 lakh tonnes of crude oil during the corresponding period of the previous year.
The ratio of refined oil sharply decreased to 4% from 15%, while crude oil ratio increased to 96% from 85% due to rise in import of crude palm oil. Crude palm oil was the largest imported oil category at 49.42 lakh tonnes, followed by crude and refined soybean oil at 32.73 lakh tonnes and crude and refined sunflower oil at 20.94 lakh tonnes. Imports of refined cooking oils were nil for a second straight month, reflecting the shift toward crude oil imports. The SEA noted that while vegetable oil imports have remained higher overall during the current oil year, the substantial decline in June has moderated the pace of cumulative growth. Nepal continued to ship significant volumes of refined oils to India, which pays no import duty under the South Asian Free Trade Area (SAFTA) pact, with Nepal exporting approximately 338,854 tonnes of refined oils between November 2025 and April 2026, mostly refined soybean oil along with sunflower oil, RBD palmolein and rapeseed oil. Exports were estimated at about 54,000 tonnes in May and 32,000 tonnes in June.
Total vegetable oil stocks stood at 20.09 lakh tonnes as of July 1, down from 22.16 lakh tonnes a year earlier, reflecting the lower June imports. Despite the June dip, cumulative imports for the current oil year (November 2025-June 2026) rose to 105.7 lakh tonnes from 99.55 lakh tonnes a year earlier, according to Business Standard. The SEA noted that while vegetable oil imports have remained higher overall during the current oil year, the substantial decline in June has moderated the pace of cumulative growth. India primarily imports palm oil from Indonesia and Malaysia, and soyabean oil from Argentina and Brazil. The oil year runs from November to October, with India being the world's biggest importer of edible oils.
