El Niño Is Biggest Wildcard for World’s Most Consumed Edible Oil
- Onset of the weather event has been relatively muted so far
- Prices of palm oil have dropped this year as output recovers
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Cooking oil traders are meticulously sifting through weather maps and production data for Indonesia in a quest for clues on how severely El Niño will dry out palm oil plantations in the world’s top supplier.
Oils extracted from the palms of Indonesia are used in everything from candy bars to soap, lipstick and fuel, and stable supplies of the most used edible oil are essential for keeping global food inflation under control. The arrival of the El Niño weather phenomenon traditionally parches the farmlands of Southeast Asia, reducing output of the tropical oil.