India resumes Malaysian palm oil purchases

MUMBAI/ SINGAPORE :Indian buyers have resumed purchases of Malaysian palm oil after a fourmonth gap following a diplomatic row, with buying spurred by a fall in domestic inventories and discounted prices, trade persons aware of the matter, said.

The renewed purchases come amid improving trade relations between the two countries after the formation of a new government in Kuala Lumpur, with Malaysia signing a deal last week to buy a record 100,000 tonnes of Indian rice. Leading Indian importers last week contracted up to 200,000 tonnes of crude palm oil from Malaysia, to be shipped in June and July, the people said.

Ship-tracking data by Refinitiv showed that India’s palm oil imports for the first four months of 2020 fell by more than 50% from the year-ago period to 1.11 million tonnes. REUTERS