Palm oil imports to drop, boosting world stockpiles

Palm oil imports by China, the world's biggest cooking oil consumer, are set to plunge this month after the government imposed more stringent inspections on shipments, potentially increasing global inventories.

Imports may be 300,000 metric tons in January, less than half of those in December, according to the median of estimates from six traders and researchers compiled by Bloomberg.

Stockpiles in Malaysia, the second-largest producer, advanced to a record in December, while exports fell 25 percent in the first 10 days of January, according to Intertek data.