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The Centre on Friday cut basic duty on crude palm oil, crude soyabean oil and crude sunflower oil from 2.5% to nil in a bid to rein in a continuous rise in the cooking oil prices since past year.
The agri-cess on these oils has been brought down from 20% to 7.5% for crude palm oil and 5% for crude soyabean oil and crude sunflower oil, the Finance Ministry said in a statement. The basic duty on RBD Palmolein Oil, Refined Soyabean and Refined Sunflower Oil has been slashed to 17.5% from the current 32.5%.
Before reduction, the agricultural infrastructure cess on all forms of crude edible oils was 20%. Post reduction, the effective duty on crude palm oil will be 8.25%, crude soyabean oil and crude sunflower oil will be 5.5% each.
“To control prices of edible oils the government has rationalised import duties on palm oil , sunflower oil and soyabean oil, futures trading in mustard oil on NCDEX has been suspended and stock limits have been imposed," the government stated further.
Moreover, to give relief to consumers during the festival season, major edible oil players, including Adani Wilmar and Ruchi Soya Industries, have cut wholesale prices by ₹4-7 per litre and other companies are also expected to follow the suit, industry body Solvent Extractors Association (SEA) said earlier this week.
The other players that reduced the wholesale rates of edible oils are Gemini Edibles and Fats India Pvt Ltd (Hyderabad), Modi Naturals (Delhi), Gokul Refoils and Solvent Ltd (Sidhpur), Vijay Solvex Ltd (Alwar) Gokul Agro Resources Ltd and N K Proteins Pvt Ltd (Ahmedabad), it said. These companies have reduced the wholesale prices after the SEA appealed to its members to do the same to give relief to consumers from high prices during the festival season.
The other players that have reduced the wholesale prices of edible oils are Gemini Edibles & Fats India, Hyderabad, Modi Naturals, Delhi, Gokul Re-foils and Solvent, Vijay Solvex, Gokul Agro Resources and N.K Proteins.
Despite international commodity prices being high, interventions have been taken by Central Government along with State Governments’ pro active involvement have led to reduction in prices of edible oils.
Edible prices are higher than year ago period but from October onwards there was a declining trend. The government is taking steps to improve the production of secondary edible oils, especially rice bran oil to reduce the import dependence.
