Image: Reuters Berita 24 English - Following a recent export prohibition, Indonesia has initiated a program to expedite the sale of at least...
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| Image: Reuters |
Berita 24 English - Following a recent export prohibition, Indonesia has initiated a program to expedite the sale of at least 1 million tonnes of crude palm oil and derivatives, according to a Thursday commerce ministry regulation.
The regulation is immediately effective, and the accelerated plan is in place until July 31.
If a bigger shipment quota is necessary, the quota may surpass 1 million, according to a regulation signed on June 7.
Indonesia, the world's largest producer of palm oil, resumed exports on May 23 after a three-week embargo aimed at bolstering local supplies of cooking oil and preventing runaway prices.
The resumption of shipments has been sluggish, however, as exporters have encountered obstacles posed by new restrictions aimed to assure domestic supplies. Farmers have difficulty to sell palm fruits due to the delays, as many storage tanks at mills are full.
"The government conducts the acceleration program to preserve production stability and prices of fresh fruit bunches at the level of planters," the regulation states.
Prior to the restriction, Indonesia's palm oil exports ranged between 2.5 million and 3 million tonnes per month. The prohibition came at a time when global vegetable oil supplies was uncertain.
To encourage exports, the government is reducing the maximum rate of export tax and fee for crude palm oil from $575 per tonne to $488 per tonne.
In order to participate in the export acceleration programme, companies are required to provide data regarding their storage inventory to the commerce ministry's online site.
After eliminating the export prohibition, the government imposed a condition that palm oil exporters sell a portion of their products domestically before receiving an export quota.
