In the first seven months of the current fiscal year, both the import of crude edible oil and the export of processed edible oil in Nepal have increased significantly.
According to the Department of Customs, Nepal imported crude edible oil worth NPR 9.37 billion and exported processed edible oil worth NPR 7.82 billion during this period.
Among the imports, crude soybean oil accounted for the largest share. In seven months, 44.84 million liters of crude soybean oil, valued at NPR 7.10 billion, were imported. Similarly, 32.41 million liters of processed soybean oil, worth NPR 6.68 billion, were exported.
Edible oils contributed around 46.5% of total exports, with soybean oil alone making up 40% of this share.
During the same period of the previous fiscal year, Nepal imported 25.93 million liters of crude soybean oil worth NPR 3.83 billion and exported 15.81 million kilograms of processed soybean oil worth NPR 3.24 billion.
This indicates that crude soybean oil imports rose by 85.38% while processed soybean oil exports increased by 106% compared to last year. Experts attribute this sharp growth mainly to policy changes in India.
On May 30, 2025, India reduced the basic customs duty on crude palm oil, soybean oil, and sunflower oil from 20% to 10%, while keeping the duty on processed oils at 35.75%. This led to an increase in the trend of importing crude oils into Nepal, processing them, and exporting them to India.
Earlier, in September 2024, India had increased import duties on both crude and refined edible oils by 20% to protect domestic oilseed farmers, which had reduced the effective import duty from 27.5% to 16.5%. Unexpectedly, this policy change benefited Nepal.
Analysts note that fluctuations in India’s customs policy have had a direct impact on Nepal–India edible oil trade. The current surge in imports and exports is seen more as a result of policy differences rather than long-term production growth.
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