Centre Lowers Customs Duty on Edible Oils Ahead of Festive Season
What Happened
The Centre has reduced customs duties on crude and refined soybean, palm, and sunflower oils to help bring down edible oil prices ahead of the festive season. Duty on crude soybean and palm oil has been cut from 10% to 5%, while crude sunflower oil will now attract zero customs duty. Duties on refined oils have also been reduced. The new rates take effect from September 24.
Key Takeaways
India imports nearly two-thirds of its edible oil requirements, making domestic prices highly sensitive to global markets. The duty cuts are expected to reduce import costs and may provide relief to consumers facing nearly 20% higher edible oil prices over the past year, especially during the high-demand festive season.