Sunflower oil prices remain high despite declining palm and soybean oil quotations

Global sunflower oil prices remain relatively high due to shipment delays, despite falling quotations for other vegetable oils. Over the past week, palm oil futures on Bursa Malaysia declined by 3.3% to $1,118/t, while soybean oil futures on the CBOT fell by 2.2% to $1,438/t. The main factors behind the decline were lower crude oil prices, expectations of rising palm oil stocks and increasing soybean oil supplies on the global market.

Meanwhile, offer prices for Russian-origin sunflower oil on an FOB St. Petersburg basis remained stable during the week at $1,275–1,300/t. At the same time, sunflower oil prices for delivery to India declined to $1,450–1,470/t. Thus, despite overall pressure on the vegetable oil market, sunflower oil continues to trade at relatively high prices, although some destinations have already recorded declines.

In Ukraine, the situation differs from global trends due to rapidly rising logistics costs. Higher road and rail transportation costs for vegetable oil and meal through the western border have pushed domestic sunflower oil prices down to $900–950/t on an FCA plant basis. Some processing plants without sufficient storage capacity for finished products are being forced to reduce prices further to accelerate shipments and free up space for new batches.

In October 2026, Ukraine exported approximately 340 thsd tons of vegetable oils, including sunflower, rapeseed and soybean oils, as well as 385 thsd tons of meals and oilcakes. During the first 27 days of October, rail exports of vegetable oils reached 112.7 thsd tons, up 1.3% from September but down 18% year over year. Of this volume, 108.5 thsd tons, or 96.3% of rail vegetable oil exports, moved through western border crossings, highlighting the country’s heavy dependence on this logistics route.

Despite challenging export conditions, Ukraine’s vegetable oil industry continues to expand its processing capacity. According to the Ukroliyaprom association, ten new oilseed processing plants have been built in Ukraine since February 2022. In 2025, Ukrainian companies processed 14 mln tons of sunflower seed, although capacity utilization reached only 68%. Meanwhile, rising logistics costs and limited storage capacity for finished products continue to put downward pressure on domestic sunflower oil prices, even as international quotations remain relatively high.

Tags: sunflower oil, soybean oil, palm oil, edible oils, global market