Malaysian palm oil exports fall by 10 percent in December

10-Jan-2025 01:15 PM

The heavy rains and severe floods in Malaysia during November and December 2024 had a significant impact on the country's palm oil industry.

According to the Malaysian Palm Oil Board (Ampob), crude palm oil (CPO) production dropped by 8.3% to 14.87 lakh tonnes in December 2024 compared to November.

The floods, particularly the devastating ones in the last week of November, were expected to result in a decline of 5-10% in production, with the possibility of a 15-20% drop if conditions worsened.

As a result of these disruptions, Malaysia's palm oil exports fell by approximately 10% in December 2024.

Additionally, the total palm oil stock in Malaysia at the end of December decreased by 6.9%, with notable declines in crude palm oil, processed palm oil, and palm kernel oil stocks.

Despite this, Malaysia saw a sharp increase in palm oil imports, which surged by 71.7% to 38,000 tonnes.

The decline in exports was attributed to both production challenges and shipment disruptions, along with rising prices that made palm oil less competitive.

As a result, major importing countries like India opted for cheaper alternatives such as soybean oil, leading to the reduced demand for Malaysian palm oil during this period.