Coconut oil exports rise 81% in January

Revitalized demand from traditional markets such as the US led to an 81.35-percent growth in coconut oil exports last month, the United Coconut Association of the Philippines (UCAP) said. According to UCAP data, coconut oil shipments increased to 115,186 metric tons (MT) in January 2013 from 63,517 MT in the same month last year. UCAP executive director Yvonne Agustin said that market demand is moving from palm kernel oil to coconut oil as global prices for the latter continue to go down. Coconut oil shipments fell by 30.25 percent to $982.32 million in 2012, with CNO prices falling 32.75 percent from $1,714.54 per MT in 2011 to $1,153.08 per MT in 2012. In January 2013, CNO prices averaged $818 per MT, compared to $790 per MT for palm kernel oil. Despite the damage Typhoon Pablo wrought on major coconut-producing areas Davao and Compostela Valley, coconut oil shipments rose 3.7 percent from 821, 445.37 MT in 2011 to 851, 913.18 MT in 2012. Lowered demand brought CNO prices down to $781 per MT before demand started rising again by year's end. Philippine Coconut Authority administrator Euclides Forbes earlier said the volume of coconut oil exports is expected to reach 925,000 MT in 2013, though Agustin said the target for this year will be announced soon. — BM, GMA News