Kenya and India Drive Recovery in Malaysian Palm Oil Exports in First Half of 2025

Malaysia’s palm oil exports recorded strong performance in June 2025, reaching 1.26 million tonnes.

This exceeded exports in the same month of previous years: 1.19 million tonnes in 2022, 1.17 million tonnes in 2023, and 1.21 million tonnes in 2024.

However, stocks rose to their highest level in 18 months, reaching 2.03 million tonnes, according to the Malaysian Palm Oil Council (MPOC).

Kenya Moves Ahead of China and the EU

MPOC said Kenya became the second-largest importer of Malaysian palm oil in the first half of 2025, ahead of the 27 EU countries by 21,000 tonnes and China by 117,000 tonnes.

Kenya alone accounted for around 30% of Malaysia’s exports to Sub-Saharan Africa, with annual imports from Malaysia expected to reach 1.3 million tonnes.

This growth is driven by rising domestic consumption, with more than 90% of imported palm oil used in food industries.

Strong Prices Supported by Indian Demand

MPOC expects crude palm oil (CPO) prices to remain strong over the coming month, ranging between RM4,100 and RM4,300 per tonne.

Prices are supported by seasonal festive demand in India and higher soybean oil prices in the United States.

However, further price increases may be limited by abundant global oilseed supply, especially soybeans.

Soybean Oil Leads Global Performance

MPOC noted that global vegetable oil prices have recovered since the start of the year, with soybean oil rising by 19%, compared with 6.6% for rapeseed oil, 3.7% for palm oil, and only 1.7% for sunflower oil.

The strong performance of soybean oil is attributed to US biofuel policy announced in June, which boosted demand for domestic feedstocks and increased the competitiveness of Malaysian palm oil.

India Regains Import Momentum

Malaysian palm oil exports to India have rebounded notably since April, helping reduce the decline seen in the first quarter of 2025.

India’s monthly imports of Malaysian palm oil exceeded 250,000 tonnes in both May and June.

This momentum is expected to continue during the third quarter in preparation for the Diwali festival in October.

MPOC expects India to import around 2.9 million tonnes of palm oil during the third quarter, supporting prices.

Source: Bernama