Crude Palm Oil Reference Price March 2026 Rises 2.22 Percent, Driven by Demand from India and China

The Ministry of Trade has established the reference price (HR) for crude palm oil (CPO) for the period of 1–31 March 2026 at $938.87 per metric tonne.

The Director General of Foreign Trade at the Ministry of Trade, Tommy Andana, stated that this figure represents a 2.22 percent increase, or $20.40 per metric tonne, compared to the 1–28 February 2026 period, which stood at $918.47 per metric tonne.

The reference price serves as the basis for determining export duties and levies.

“The strengthening of CPO reference prices has been influenced by increased demand, particularly from major importing countries such as India and China, which has not been matched by increases in supply. The limited supply has resulted from declining production and rising prices of other vegetable oils, namely soybean oil,” said Tommy in a statement in Jakarta on Saturday (28 February 2026).

Tommy explained that the Ministry of Trade Regulation Number 35 of 2025 governs the use of price sources. If the average variance from three sources exceeds $40 per metric tonne, the calculation uses the two sources that form the median and are closest to the median.

“Consequently, the reference price is sourced from the Malaysian CPO Exchange and the Indonesian CPO Exchange. Based on this calculation, the CPO reference price has been set at $938.87 per metric tonne,” said Tommy.

Refined, Bleached, and Deodorised (RBD) palm olein oil in branded packaging with a net weight of up to 25 kilogrammes is subject to an export duty of $31 per metric tonne.