CPO imports will continue: Beddu
CPO imports will continue: Beddu
JAKARTA (JP): The National Logistics Agency (Bulog) has
pledged to continue importing crude palm oil (CPO) to stabilize
domestic cooking oil prices.
Beddu Amang, Bulog's head, said the agency would keep
importing olein, which costs Rp 150 a kilogram more overseas than
on local markets, although this would amount to a significant
subsidy.
He said the agency lost about Rp 15 billion (US$6.4 million) a
year to stabilize cooking oil prices.
"We have successfully stabilized the price of local crude palm
oil in the past three years," Beddu said recently as quoted by
Bisnis Indonesia daily.
The agency keeps buffer stocks to control prices of important
commodities such as rice, sugar and cooking oil.
The agency imports olein, cooking oils or even CPO to
stabilize local cooking oil prices.
Indonesia is a major CPO producer, but most locally produced
CPO is exported because overseas prices are higher.
The agency also buys CPO from state-owned palm oil producers.
The CPO is processed at local refineries under a cooperation
scheme before being sold directly to local markets.
The agency's data shows that it now holds 44,505 tons of olien
stock.
The agency said it would import about 12,000 tons of olien and
buy 11,000 tons locally this month, raising its stock to about
68,000 tons.
On the government's proposal to establish a futures commodity
exchange, Beddu said he fully supported the plan to include CPO
in futures trading.
He said that trading CPO futures could raise the commodity's
sales value and export volume, which would raise the income of
farmers, producers and exporters.
"CPO can be traded on the futures exchange as well, although
only agricultural products are commonly traded on futures
exchanges," he said.
The House of Representatives is deliberating the government-
sponsored bill on the futures commodities exchange.
CPO exports rose last year as a government regulation, which
imposed an export tax on CPO producers, was temporarily dropped.
The export tax is automatically dropped if prices on the world
market fall below $434 a ton for CPO and below $500 a ton for
olein and cooking oil. (02)