Govt cuts import duty on crude palm oil to 27.5% effective from tomorrow

The government on Thursday reduced the basic customs duty on crude palm oil to 27.5%, a move that would increase availability of the commodity in the domestic market.

The duty cut would also help cool off rising edible oil prices in domestic markets.

The Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) in a notification said the basic customs duty (BCD) rate on crude palm oil has been revised to 27.5% with effect from November 27.

The BCD on crude palm oil is 37.5% currently.

Palm oil constitutes over 40% of India's total edible oil consumption. Edible oil is India's third-largest imported commodity after crude oil and gold.

India is the world's largest importer of edible oil, and buys around 15 million tonnes annually from countries including Malaysia and Indonesia.

Earlier in January, the government had slashed customs duty on crude palm oil from 40% to 37.5% for imports from Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries.

The retail inflation, based on consumer price index, was at a six-year high of 7.61% in October, while wholesale price-based inflation rose to a eight-month high of 1.48%.