Indonesia to continue palm oil exports after the export restriction

The Indonesian government decided to lift the export restriction on cooking oil on May 23, as the domestic supply of cooking oil improved.?

"Based on the current supply and price of cooking oil and considering that there are 17 million workers in the palm oil industry, including farmers, workers, and other supporting staff, I have decided that the export of cooking oil will resume on Monday, May 23, 2022," said Joko Widodo, Indonesian President in a video broadcast from Merdeka Palace in Jakarta.?

The government banned all palm oil exports on April 28 to deal with the shortage in the domestic market. The cooking oil sold in bulk in the traditional market is reduced in price by 28 percent to about $1 a liter from $1.3.?

Since then, the price has fallen between IDR 17,200 and IDR 17,600 ($1.17 and $1.20), but Joko Widodo said that the government has acknowledged that the availability of cooking oil has improved.

Based on government data, the demand for bulk cooking oil is around 194,000 tonnes per month. Before the export restriction, the supply only reached 64,500 tonnes. After the export restriction in April, the stock increased to 211,000 tonnes per month, surpassing the monthly national demand, said Joko Widodo.

Increasing supply and decreasing prices is a joint effort of the government, public enterprises, and the private sector.

Joko Widodo said the government would continue to monitor closely to ensure that supplies are provided at affordable prices.

References:

Jakarta Globe. (2022, May 19). Indonesia to Resume Palm Oil Exports on Monday. Retrieved from https://jakartaglobe.id/business/indonesia-to-resume-palm-oil-exports-on-monday/