Crude soybean oil imports up 85 per cent, export of refined oil nearly doubles

Kathmandu. KATHMANDU: The import of crude edible oil and export of refined oil has increased significantly in the last seven months of the current fiscal year.

According to the data of the Department of Customs, crude edible oil worth Rs 93.75 billion was imported and refined edible oil worth Rs 78.19 billion was exported during the period.

Crude soybean oil accounts for the largest share in total imports. A total of 448 million litres of crude soybean oil worth Rs 70.99 billion was imported in the first seven months of the current fiscal year.

Similarly, 324 million 19 thousand 22 liters of processed soybean oil worth Rs 66.78 billion was exported, according to the data of the department.

The share of all types of edible oil in the total export is around 46.5 percent, while soybean oil alone accounts for 40 percent.

In the same period of the last fiscal year, 259.2 million 95 thousand 353 liters of crude soybean oil worth Rs 38.29 billion was imported. Similarly, 158 million 38 thousand 831 kilograms of soybean oil worth Rs 32.41 billion was exported.

According to the statistics, the import of crude soybean oil has increased by 85.38 percent while the export of refined soybean oil has increased by 106 percent. India’s policy change is seen as the main reason behind this increase.

On May 30, 2025, the Government of India reduced the basic customs duty on crude palm oil, soyabean oil and sunflower oil from 20 per cent to 10 per cent and on refried oil to 35.75 per cent. After this decision, the trend of importing crude oil, refining it and exporting it to India has increased.

India had in September 2024 hiked import duty on edible oils, both crude and refined, to protect domestic oil farmers. As a result, the total import duty in India came down from 27.5 percent to 16.5 percent. But Nepal seems to have benefited unexpectedly from this decision.

According to experts, fluctuations in India’s customs policy are having a direct impact on the edible oil trade between Nepal and India. The abnormal increase in import and export seen at present is the result of policy differences rather than long-term production growth.