Oilmeal exports declined 50 per cent in August due to weak overseas demand and lower availability for crushing from domestic sources.
According to data compiled by the Mumbai-based Solvent Extractors’ Association (SEA), oilmeal exports in August declined to 215,000 tonnes as compared to 427,000 tonnes in the same month last year. SEA attributed the fall to lower overseas demand amid uncertainty over economic recovery. Overall export of oilmeals between April and August also plunged 57 per cent to 1.01 million tonnes from 2.34 million tonnes in the same period last year.
Export of soymeal sharply declined to 473,000 tonnes during the first five months of the current financial year from a healthy 1.6 million tonnes in the same period last year. Rapemeal and castormeal shipments also fell to 417,000 tonnes and 61,000 tonnes from 502,000 tonnes and 110,000 tonnes, respectively. Exports of ricebran extraction fell from 102,000 tonnes to 51,000 tonnes.
India also found a new market for sunflower extraction overseas, which was shipped for the first time to the tune of 1,241 tonnes between the April-August period.
Between April-August, China bought 157,000 tonnes of oilmeals mainly consisting of rapeseed meal (138,000 tonnes) and small quantity of soymeal. However, export to Vietnam declined to 270,000 tonnes from 582,000 tonnes in the period under consideration. Similarly exports to South Korea, Japan, Indonesia and Thailand also came down due to an overall fall in exports.
