No change in custom duty on CPO imported from ASEAN: trade body clarifies

Import duty on crude plam oil (CPO) remain unchanged at 37.5 per cent if the edible oil is imported under the ASEAN pact, trade body SEA clarified on Saturday.

The clarification comes amid confusion among traders after the customs notification in the Budget document mentioned duty on CPO at 44 per cent.

On December 31, the government had reduced the duty on CPO to 37.5 per cent from 40 per cent. The duty cut was made under the ASEAN agreement and India Malaysia Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (IMCECA).

"There was confusion about 44 per cent customs duty on CPO mentioned in the Budget document. The finance ministry has clarified that there is no change in import duty on CPO under the ASEAN agreement. The duty remains unchanged at 37.5 per cent," Solvent Extractors Association of India (SEA) Executive Director B V Mehta told PTI.

India purchases bulk of CPO from ASEAN nations specially Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand. The 44 per cent duty on CPO is just a standard rate, he added.

Palm oil comprises more than 60 per cent of India's total vegetable imports. The country imported 7.41 lakh tonne of CPO in December 2019, while total vegetable oils shipments stood at 11.28 lakh tonnes in the same period, the SEA data showed.