India’s sunflower oil imports to fall after suspension of ‘grain deal’ – forecast

India’s imports of sunflower oil are likely to fall in the coming months as it becomes uncompetitive with rival oils due to rising prices following Russia’s withdrawal from the grain deal, industry officials told Reuters.

The drop in sunflower oil imports will force the world’s biggest buyer of vegetable oils to increase purchases of palm and soybean oils.

India’s sunflower oil shipments may drop about 30 percent from current levels, said Pradeep Chowdhry, managing director of Gemini Edibles and Fats India Pvt. Ltd. Ltd, India’s top importer.

Spot prices rose from $850 to $965 a ton in the past five weeks on expectations that the grain deal will expire and amid higher prices for competing oils.

India typically imports about 250,000 tons of sunflower oil a month, mainly from Russia, Ukraine, Argentina and Turkey.

Earlier this year, Black Sea exporters were actively selling sunflower oil at competitive prices, which helped reduce inventories, said Rajesh Patel, managing partner at GGN Research, a trader and broker of edible oils.

India may import about 275,000 tons of sunflower oil in July, but imports may fall to about 200,000 tons from August, Patel said.

Ukraine has been selling sunflower seeds to Romania and Bulgaria in recent months, where they are processed into oil that is exported to India, a New Delhi-based dealer at a global trading house said.

“Uncertainty in the sunflower oil market will force some processors to switch to palm oil and soybean oil, which are also available at competitive prices,” the dealer said.

Tags: India, palm oil, Black Sea grain corridor, sunflower oil, soybean oil, prices