In a welcome relief for households, cooking oil prices are expected to fall by 5-6 percent at the retail level within the next two weeks. This follows the central government’s decision to reduce import duty on crude edible oils by 10 percent.
Officials stated that the reduction in import duty aims to ease the supply constraints. These constraints had driven up edible oil prices sharply in recent months.
The edible oil market had seen prices surge by nearly 17 percent over the past few months. This increase caused financial strain on consumers across the country.
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Government’s Duty Cut to Ease Edible Oil Prices and Supply
Sudhakar Rao Desai, director and CEO of Emami Agrotech, said the recent import duty cut is a positive and much-needed step. It aims to cool the soaring edible oil prices. Prices had witnessed a sharp surge of nearly 17 percent in recent months. They are now expected to stabilize soon and ease into single-digit growth levels. This adjustment is anticipated to provide significant relief to consumers who have been struggling with rising costs.
The move is also expected to improve the availability of edible oils in the market, helping retailers better manage their inventories and reduce cost pressures that had built up due to supply constraints.
Overall, the government’s import duty reduction is seen as a timely intervention to shield consumers from further price shocks and provide some breathing room amid the broader challenges of rising food inflation.
