Kashmir remark sparks trade war between India and Malaysia: palm oil businesses suffer

[Mighty Lion]

India likely to restrict imports of palm oil, other goods from Malaysia - sources
Aftab Ahmed and Rajendra Jadhav

FILE PHOTO: Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad addresses the 74th session of the United Nations General Assembly at U.N. headquarters in New York City, New York, U.S., September 27, 2019.
REUTERS/EDUARDO MUNOZ

NEW DELHI/MUMBAI (Reuters) - India is considering restricting imports of some products from Malaysia including palm oil, according to government and industry sources, in reaction to the Southeast Asian country's leader criticizing New Delhi for its actions in Kashmir.

India is looking for ways to limit palm oil imports and may place restrictions on other goods from the country, said a government source and an industry source who participated in discussions led by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry on the planned restrictions.

The sources asked not to be named as the proposal was still under discussion.

India's government was angered after Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad said last month at the United Nations that India had "invaded and occupied" Jammu and Kashmir and asked New Delhi to work with Pakistan to resolve the issue.

Muslim-majority Kashmir is divided between India and Pakistan, which both claim it in full and have twice gone to war over the territory. India revoked the special constitutional status of its portion of Kashmir in August, angering Pakistan.

The government wants to send a strong signal of its displeasure to Malaysian authorities, the sources said.

India, the world's biggest importer of edible oils, is planning to substitute Malaysian palm oil with supplies of edible oils from countries such as Indonesia, Argentina and Ukraine, said the sources.

Palm oil accounts for nearly two-thirds of India's total edible oil imports. India buys more than 9 million tonnes of palm oil annually, mainly from Indonesia and Malaysia.

In the first nine months of 2019 India was the biggest buyer of Malaysian palm oil, taking 3.9 million tonnes, according to data compiled by the Malaysian Palm Oil Board.

ALTERNATIVE SELLERS

Malaysia's prime minister on Friday said he had not received "anything official" from India, after Reuters first reported that India was mulling restricting imports of Malaysian palm oil and other products.

The news prompted Malaysian palm oil futures to snap five days of gains to end lower on Friday evening.

The benchmark palm oil contract for December delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange that had earlier been trading up on the day, fell 0.9% to close at 2,185 ringgit ($522.23) per tonne.

A Mumbai-based refiner said it would not create a shortage of edible oils in India if buyers there stopped importing palm oil from Malaysia.

"Indonesia is eager to sell more and more palm oil to India," the refiner said, adding that India could also increase imports of soyoil from Argentina and sunflower oil from Ukraine to offset any drop in Malaysian palm oil shipments.

Indonesia wants New Delhi to increase palm oil purchases and wants to buy sugar from India in exchange.

Higher Indian imports had helped Malaysia reduce stockpiles in 2019, but stocks could rise again and prices could come under pressure if India curtails or stops imports, said a Mumbai-based dealer with a global trading firm.

India's government is also planning some restrictions on imports from Turkey, one of the government sources said, as Ankara has issued repeated statements on Kashmir, an issue that India considers an internal matter.

In addition to tensions around Kashmir, there has also been friction between India and Malaysia over Islamic preacher Zakir Naik, whom Indian authorities want extradited from Malaysia.

In 2016, an Indian counterterrorism agency accused Naik of promoting hate speech.

https://mobile.reuters.com/article/amp/idUSKBN1WQ17Z?__twitter_impression=true

 

[Fireurimagination]

There is also an informal campaign on social media by some people urging Indian tourists to avoid malaysia in ther holiday plans

 

[Gandhi G in da house]

There is also an informal campaign on social media by some people urging Indian tourists to avoid malaysia in ther holiday plans

It would be unfortunate if this happens.

India shouldn't take such actions against Malaysia. Unlike China and Turkey, Malaysia has never had an anti India policy on Kashmir. They were always neutral. It is only this Mahathir fellow who is firstly only an interim PM and secondly 94 years old who has taken such a stand against india. The public of Malaysia don't like him either and are waiting for him to step down from PM's post and hand it over to his successor which will happen in 2020 or 2021.

Check out the public comments on the below article by common Malaysians to see what I am saying.

https://www.malaysiakini.com/news/495473

Most Malaysians don't like him and he will go in another year or two if he doesn't drop dead before that.

We must not take actions against Malaysia which will hurt our age old relations in the long run because of one senile old man who will not be around for long anyway.

 

[Lincoln]

India likely to restrict imports of palm oil, other goods from Malaysia - sources
Aftab Ahmed and Rajendra Jadhav

FILE PHOTO: Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad addresses the 74th session of the United Nations General Assembly at U.N. headquarters in New York City, New York, U.S., September 27, 2019.
REUTERS/EDUARDO MUNOZ

NEW DELHI/MUMBAI (Reuters) - India is considering restricting imports of some products from Malaysia including palm oil, according to government and industry sources, in reaction to the Southeast Asian country's leader criticizing New Delhi for its actions in Kashmir.

India is looking for ways to limit palm oil imports and may place restrictions on other goods from the country, said a government source and an industry source who participated in discussions led by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry on the planned restrictions.

The sources asked not to be named as the proposal was still under discussion.

India's government was angered after Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad said last month at the United Nations that India had "invaded and occupied" Jammu and Kashmir and asked New Delhi to work with Pakistan to resolve the issue.

Muslim-majority Kashmir is divided between India and Pakistan, which both claim it in full and have twice gone to war over the territory. India revoked the special constitutional status of its portion of Kashmir in August, angering Pakistan.

The government wants to send a strong signal of its displeasure to Malaysian authorities, the sources said.

India, the world's biggest importer of edible oils, is planning to substitute Malaysian palm oil with supplies of edible oils from countries such as Indonesia, Argentina and Ukraine, said the sources.

Palm oil accounts for nearly two-thirds of India's total edible oil imports. India buys more than 9 million tonnes of palm oil annually, mainly from Indonesia and Malaysia.

In the first nine months of 2019 India was the biggest buyer of Malaysian palm oil, taking 3.9 million tonnes, according to data compiled by the Malaysian Palm Oil Board.

ALTERNATIVE SELLERS

Malaysia's prime minister on Friday said he had not received "anything official" from India, after Reuters first reported that India was mulling restricting imports of Malaysian palm oil and other products.

The news prompted Malaysian palm oil futures to snap five days of gains to end lower on Friday evening.

The benchmark palm oil contract for December delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange that had earlier been trading up on the day, fell 0.9% to close at 2,185 ringgit ($522.23) per tonne.

A Mumbai-based refiner said it would not create a shortage of edible oils in India if buyers there stopped importing palm oil from Malaysia.

"Indonesia is eager to sell more and more palm oil to India," the refiner said, adding that India could also increase imports of soyoil from Argentina and sunflower oil from Ukraine to offset any drop in Malaysian palm oil shipments.

Indonesia wants New Delhi to increase palm oil purchases and wants to buy sugar from India in exchange.

Higher Indian imports had helped Malaysia reduce stockpiles in 2019, but stocks could rise again and prices could come under pressure if India curtails or stops imports, said a Mumbai-based dealer with a global trading firm.

India's government is also planning some restrictions on imports from Turkey, one of the government sources said, as Ankara has issued repeated statements on Kashmir, an issue that India considers an internal matter.

In addition to tensions around Kashmir, there has also been friction between India and Malaysia over Islamic preacher Zakir Naik, whom Indian authorities want extradited from Malaysia.

In 2016, an Indian counterterrorism agency accused Naik of promoting hate speech.

https://mobile.reuters.com/article/amp/idUSKBN1WQ17Z?__twitter_impression=true

There is also an informal campaign on social media by some people urging Indian tourists to avoid malaysia in ther holiday plans

Likely not.

People, whenever they get upset about something, they suggest that imports be cancelled - remember whenever China veto'd in UNSC.

But the people forget that the imports are not a mercy bestowed by them on other countries. It is a necessity.

You restrict imports and you will be forced to get it from elsewhere for a much higher price, that hurts the economy.

As for the informal campaign; people will be people, that is emotional creatures. Most of the people in this campaign don't even travel, I can tell you that.

It would be unfortunate if this happens.

India shouldn't take such actions against Malaysia. Unlike China and Turkey, Malaysia has never had an anti India policy on Kashmir. They were always neutral. It is only this Mahathir fellow who is firstly only an interim PM and secondly 94 years old who has taken such a stand against india. The public of Malaysia don't like him either and are waiting for him to step down from PM's post and hand it over to his successor which will happen in 2020 or 2021.

Check out the public comments on the below article by common Malaysians to see what I am saying.

https://www.malaysiakini.com/news/495473

Most Malaysians don't like him and he will go in another year or two if he doesn't drop dead before that.

We must not take actions against Malaysia which will hurt our age old relations in the long run because of one senile old man who will not be around for long anyway.

If you judge that by comments then I pity you. If I start drawing demographics based on comments from TOI then everyone in India is better left dead.

Survey shows at least 40% support for his party. That's more in % than that of BJP in India. Lastly, none of his critics criticised him for his Kashmir stance and foreign policy, I think that speaks a lot.

Enjoy.


Also, lmao at this "tourist campaign," south east Asians probably don't contribute to even 1% of world tourism income.

 

[Rusty]

Judging by how many Indians there are in Malaysia, any boycott is just a Hindutva wet dream.

 

[Shabi1]

These are just words for local public.

Would be impractical as Malaysia is not alone, alot of other countries are raising voices on Kashmir. Will they restrict US trade as well.

Legislative process initiated on the Kashmir issue in the US Senate

 

[Gandhi G in da house]

Likely not.

People, whenever they get upset about something, they suggest that imports be cancelled - remember whenever China veto'd in UNSC.

But the people forget that the imports are not a mercy bestowed by them on other countries. It is a necessity.

You restrict imports and you will be forced to get it from elsewhere for a much higher price, that hurts the economy.

As for the informal campaign; people will be people, that is emotional creatures. Most of the people in this campaign don't even travel, I can tell you that.



If you judge that by comments then I pity you. If I start drawing demographics based on comments from TOI then everyone in India is better left dead.

Survey shows at least 40% support for his party. That's more in % than that of BJP in India. Lastly, none of his critics criticised him for his Kashmir stance and foreign policy, I think that speaks a lot.

Enjoy.


Also, lmao at this "tourist campaign," south east Asians probably don't contribute to even 1% of world tourism income.

They supported his party, not him. He was appointed as an interim PM because the guy who was supposed to be PM was in jail. Now he has been released. There are calls in Malaysia from every quarter asking Mahathir to step down now. You can do your research.

Judging by how many Indians there are in Malaysia, any boycott is just a Hindutva wet dream.

They are all born Malaysians living there for centuries not recent immigrants.

 

[Chhatrapati]

But the people forget that the imports are not a mercy bestowed by them on other countries. It is a necessity.

You restrict imports and you will be forced to get it from elsewhere for a much higher price, that hurts the economy.

When there are alternate markets for the same goods there is no problem whatsoever. Say Indonesia is also largest exporters of palmoil. Malaysia's loss is Indonesia's gain. It's not about economy either, it's about sending a message. That's the whole point of the trade war.

As for the informal campaign; people will be people, that is emotional creatures. Most of the people in this campaign don't even travel, I can tell you that.

It's like saying BDS campaign is useless as people would buy intel chips anyway. If one person decides against, that in itself means something.

Survey shows at least 40% support for his party. That's more in % than that of BJP in India. Lastly, none of his critics criticised him for his Kashmir stance and foreign policy, I think that speaks a lot.

Not 40% maybe 90% would support removal of article 370. Let the state come down to our level, no special privileges just be like Maharashtra, or Kerala. Another Indian state that don't need special economic package.

 

[ARMalik]

Indians and their idiotic dreams. Malaysian GDP per Capita is $10,000. India's is $1,900. Beggars cannot dictate anything except to beg for a "Lower Price". Malaysia is a much more advance economy than India and they know what to do to compensate.

China, Pakistan and Turkey can easily compensate for any indian restrictions on Malaysian palm oil imports.

 

[Rusty]

They supported his party, not him. He was appointed as an interim PM because the guy who was supposed to be PM was in jail. Now he has been released. There are calls in Malaysia from every quarter asking Mahathir to step down now. You can do your research.



They are all born Malaysians living there for centuries not recent immigrants.

so they are invaders then?

By your Hindutva logic they should leave as that is not their homeland.
Their homelands is shitting in the holy Ganga


And I have personally met many many first generation Indians in Malaysia so you are not only stupid but wrong.

 

[Gandhi G in da house]

so they are invaders then?

By your Hindutva logic they should leave as that is not their homeland.
Their homelands is shitting in the holy Ganga


And I have personally met many many first generation Indians in Malaysia so you are not only stupid but wrong.

Donkey doesn't know the difference between immigrants and invaders.

And read this if you can with your donkey brains -

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malaysian_Indians#Demographics

Malaysian Indians or Indian Malaysians (Tamil: மலேசிய இந்தியர்கள்), consist of people of Indian descent—particularly Tamil Indians from Tamil Nadu—who were born in or immigrated to Malaysia. Most are descendants of those who migrated from India during the British colonisation of Malaya.

Some Indians could be recent immigrants too of course but the vast majority are not.

 

[Rusty]

Donkey doesn't know the difference between immigrants and invaders.

And read this if you can with your donkey brains -

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malaysian_Indians#Demographics

Malaysian Indians or Indian Malaysians (Tamil: மலேசிய இந்தியர்கள்), consist of people of Indian descent—particularly Tamil Indians from Tamil Nadu—who were born in or immigrated to Malaysia. Most are descendants of those who migrated from India during the British colonisation of Malaya.

Some Indians could be recent immigrants too of course but the vast majority are not.

I am just using Hindutva logic, they are not indigenous to the land so they are invaders.

and don't insult Donkeys, they are much smarter then you.

"...Most are descendants of those who migrated from India during the British colonisation of Malaya..."

I am sure a donkey can tell the difference between "most" and "all"

So back to my point, There are first generation Indians stinking up Malaysia so you are again stupid and wrong.

 

[ARMalik]

so they are invaders then?

By your Hindutva logic they should leave as that is not their homeland.
Their homelands is shitting in the holy Ganga


And I have personally met many many first generation Indians in Malaysia so you are not only stupid but wrong.

Its the same here .... the Indians born in Australia consider the indians back home as "Illiterate cavemen".

 

[Rusty]

Its the same here .... the Indians born in Australia consider the indians back home as "Illiterate cavemen".

The generation of Indians who left before the 90s, mostly have not been tainted by the retarded Ideology of Hindutva so they are mostly civilized people.

The newer immigrants however are one street poop away from going back caveman day.... so going back to India.

 

[Gandhi G in da house]

I am just using Hindutva logic, they are not indigenous to the land so they are invaders.

and don't insult Donkeys, they are much smarter then you.

"...Most are descendants of those who migrated from India during the British colonisation of Malaya..."

I am sure a donkey can tell the difference between "most" and "all"

So back to my point, There are first generation Indians stinking up Malaysia so you are again stupid and wrong.

Where does Hindutva logic come into this discussion donkey ? Your donkey brains can't think beyond Hindutva on any issue. You know nothing about me or who i vote for so don't use your donkey brains for a while.

Going back to your original point where you mentioned that there are so many Indians in Malaysia that there cannot be any restriction on imports in Malaysian goods. The fact that the vast majority are Malaysian born for a long time and only few are recent immigrants shows that there is no such cause for worry. My initial point still stands. "Most" or "all", these are trivial details. The impact is the same.

The generation of Indians who left before the 90s, mostly have not been tainted by the retarded Ideology of Hindutva so they are mostly civilized people.

The newer immigrants however are one street poop away from going back caveman day.... so going back to India.

Language is the one of the first signs of civilisation or the lack of it and yours gives away your level of civilisation right away.