Hanoi (VNA) – Indonesia’ palmoil exports andits derivatives dropped to 4.93 million tonnes in the first two months of 2020 from6.6 million tonnes in the same period last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic’simpact, the Indonesian Palm Oil Producers Association (GAPKI) said on April 21.

TheGAPKI’s data show that the country’s two-month palm oil exports to China nosedived by 500,000 tons compared to the same period lastyear, while shipments to India down 188,000 tonnes and to Africa down 250,000tonnes.

Itspalm oil stockpile stood at 4.08 million tonnes by the end of February, decliningfrom 4.54 million tonnes in the previous month.

In 2019, Indonesia shipped 36.18million tonnes of crude palm oil (CPO) abroad. Its CPO production reached51.8 million tonnes, up about 9 percent year on year.

The export volume of palm products lastyear was at 35.7 million tonnes worth 19 billion USD, respectively rising 4percent and decreasing 17 percent from 2018.

GAPKI Chairman Joko Supriyonoestimated that the CPO production growth will remain slow in 2020 dueto drought and a cut of fertiliser use in 2019, which is likely to affect thecrop yields.

Indonesia is the world’s largest CPO producer, and thepalm oil industry is one of major foreign currency earners of this country,contributing 3.5 billion USD to non-oil and gas exports last February./.