MUMBAI, Dec 3 (Reuters) - India's edible oil imports in November jumped to their highest level in four months as refiners raised purchases of palm oil, soyoil and sunflower oil to replenish inventories after robust demand during festival season, five dealers said.
Higher palm oil imports by India, the world's biggest buyer of vegetable oils, would help in bringing down inventories in producing countries and support benchmark Malaysian palm oil futures trading near their highest in over two years.
Palm oil imports edged 0.5% higher in November from the previous month to 850,000 metric tons, according to estimates from dealers.
Festival season demand was good this year, which gave confidence to refiners to buy more to restock, said Sandeep Bajoria, CEO of Sunvin Group, a vegetable oil brokerage.
Indians celebrated the Dussehra and Diwali festivals in October and November, increasing the consumption of sweets and fried food.
Soyoil imports in November rose 20% from a month ago to 410,000 metric tons the highest in three months, while sunflower oil imports jumped 43% to hit a four-month high of 341,000 metric tons, dealers said.
Refiners raised sunflower oil imports to meet robust demand from southern states and replenish depleted stocks caused by lower imports in September and October, said Rajesh Patel, managing partner at GGN Research, an edible oil trader.
The rise in imports of soyoil and sunflower oil lifted the country's total edible oil imports in November by 12% to 1.6 million tons, according to dealers' estimates.
India buys palm oil mainly from Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand, while it imports soyoil and sunflower oil from Argentina, Brazil, Russia and Ukraine.
Industry body the Solvent Extractors' Association of India is likely to publish its data on November imports by mid-December.
Palm oil imports in December could fall to 600,000 tons as the recent price rally made competing oils attractive for Indian buyers, Bajoria said.
Reporting by Rajendra Jadhav; Editing by Alison Williams
Source: Reuters