Vegetable oil import slips 4.4% in Dec .

Import of vegetable oil declined 4.4 per cent to 7.52 lakh tonnes (lt) in December against 7.87 lt the same period a year ago. However, it increased around 12 per cent month-on-month, with November imports estimated at 6.68 lt.

According to the Solvent Extractor's Association of India (SEA), the total import of vegetable oils in the first two months of the current oil year (November 2010-October 2011) slid eight per cent to 14.21 lt compared with 15.41 lt to the year-ago period.

Data available with SEA said during December 2010, the import of edible oils declined by nearly four per cent to 7.30 lt compared with 7.61 lt the same period last year. The import of non-edible oils also declined by over 12 per cent in December 2010 to 22,494 tonnes (25,588 tonnes).

“Current stock of edible oils at various ports (as on January 1) is estimated at 6.45 lt and about 7.5 lt are in pipeline,” according to a press release from SEA.

Source : thehindubusinessline.com