To bring down food inflation ahead of the festive season, the central government late on Wednesday lowered import duties on crude palm and soya oils to 5 per cent from 10 per cent, while duties on their refined counterparts were reduced to 27.5 per cent from 32.5 per cent.
The import duty on crude sunflower oil has been reduced from 10 per cent to zero, while the duty on refined sunflower oil has been lowered from 32.5 per cent to 22.5 per cent, according to an official notification. The changes take effect on September 24.
The reduction in import duties comes amid a sharp rise in food inflation. According to the latest data, Wholesale Price Index (WPI)-based food inflation rose to a 20-month high of 7.1 per cent in August 2026 from 6.6 per cent in July, largely owing to higher prices of fruits, vegetables, milk, spices, edible oils and sugar.
While core WPI inflation eased marginally to 8.1 per cent in August 2026 from a series high of 8.2 per cent in July, it remained elevated, with seven of the 21 subsectors, including chemicals and metals, reporting double-digit inflation during the month.
