# Southeast Asia's turn to crops for fuel leaves less for food and exports - Nikkei Asia

> Southeast Asian countries are shifting crops toward fuel, with Indonesia and Malaysia moving to higher biodiesel blends linked to the Iran war energy shock. Consumer cooking oil rationing has appeared in Thailand, signalling tighter edible oil supplies.

- Date: 2026-05-22 · published 2026-05-22T12:00:00.000Z
- Category: policy · region Southeast Asia · magnitude medium
- Page: https://feedsoft.ai/events/15474-southeast-asia-s-turn-to-crops-for-fuel-leaves-less-for-food-and-exports-nikkei
- Commodities: [Palm Oil](https://feedsoft.ai/c/PALMOIL.md), [Soybean Oil](https://feedsoft.ai/c/SBO.md)

## Why it matters

Diverting palm oil and other crops to biofuel reduces food and export availability, tightening vegetable oil supplies and supporting prices for palm and soy oils.

## Read by commodity

- SBO: bullish ▲
- PALMOIL: bullish ▲

## Similar past events

| Commodity | Date | Event | 5-day % | 20-day % |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| PALMOIL | 2025-05-14 | [Indonesian palm oil exports set to fall with biofuel mandate - Nikkei Asia](https://feedsoft.ai/events/24754-indonesian-palm-oil-exports-set-to-fall-with-biofuel-mandate-nikkei-asia.md) | +0.7% | +1.5% |
| PALMOIL | 2022-04-25 | [Malaysia urges countries to prioritise food over fuel as Indonesia bans palm exports](https://feedsoft.ai/events/15830-malaysia-urges-countries-to-prioritise-food-over-fuel-as-indonesia-bans-palm.md) | +1.2% | -1.7% |
| PALMOIL | 2019-09-24 | [Indonesia to Imposes Export Levy for CPO Starts Jan. 2020 - The Insiders Stories](https://feedsoft.ai/events/56964-indonesia-to-imposes-export-levy-for-cpo-starts-jan-2020-the-insiders-stories.md) | -0.7% | +0.6% |
| PALMOIL | 2023-02-07 | [Indonesia shakes palm oil market again, eyeing biodiesel over exports - Nikkei Asia](https://feedsoft.ai/events/15757-indonesia-shakes-palm-oil-market-again-eyeing-biodiesel-over-exports-nikkei-asia.md) | +0.2% | +4.2% |
| PALMOIL | 2024-09-28 | [Indonesia's palm oil exports to decline amid rising domestic demand for biodiesel I I Bioenergy Business](https://feedsoft.ai/events/15616-indonesia-s-palm-oil-exports-to-decline-amid-rising-domestic-demand-for.md) | +9.1% | +9.7% |
| SBO | 2025-05-14 | [Indonesian palm oil exports set to fall with biofuel mandate - Nikkei Asia](https://feedsoft.ai/events/24754-indonesian-palm-oil-exports-set-to-fall-with-biofuel-mandate-nikkei-asia.md) | -0.6% | -4.3% |
| SBO | 2022-04-25 | [Malaysia urges countries to prioritise food over fuel as Indonesia bans palm exports](https://feedsoft.ai/events/15830-malaysia-urges-countries-to-prioritise-food-over-fuel-as-indonesia-bans-palm.md) | +1.6% | -4.6% |
| SBO | 2019-03-15 | [Europe, in bid to phase out palm biofuel, leaves fans and foes dismayed](https://feedsoft.ai/events/60107-europe-in-bid-to-phase-out-palm-biofuel-leaves-fans-and-foes-dismayed.md) | -1.0% | -1.4% |

## Sources

- asia.nikkei.com: https://asia.nikkei.com/spotlight/big-in-asia/southeast-asia-s-turn-to-crops-for-fuel-leaves-less-for-food-and-exports

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Data from Feedsoft AI (https://feedsoft.ai/). For information only; not investment advice.