Palm oil price slides to K7,000 per viss tracking import prices

The drop in imported palm oil prices causes price retreat in the domestic market, Myanmar Edible Oil Dealers’ Association.
At present, the imported palm oil price stands at US$1,792 per tonne. The palm oil price falls again to K7,000 per viss (a viss equals 1.6 kilogrammes) in the domestic market accordingly.
In early March 2022, the imported palm oil price climbed up to $1,881 per tonne. Consequently, the domestic palm oil price bounced to approximately K8,000 per viss.
Starting from 15 September 2021, the Central Bank of Myanmar has sold the foreign currencies multiple times for the palm oil importing companies at the minimum exchange rate of K1,753 and the maximum rate of K1,820 per dollar as of 4 February so that the palm oil can be distributed at the fairer price.
Myanmar Edible Oil Dealers’ Association sells those palm oil with the mobile market trucks at the subsidized rate of K6,700 per viss at the moment.
Over 6,000 tonnes of palm oil which is equivalent to $79 million are being sold at the subsidized price. Of them, 195.41 tonnes of palm oil are left for sales, said an official of the Consumer Affairs Department.
The domestic consumption of edible oil is estimated at 1 million tonnes per year. The local cooking oil production is just about 400,000 tonnes. To meet the self-sufficiency in the domestic market, about 700,000 tonnes of cooking oil are yearly imported. — NN/GNLM