EU-28 biodiesel imports from the world's three biggest exporters, Argentina, Indonesia and Malaysia, have dropped substantially since 2013. Whereas in 2012, Argentina still exported 1.48 million metric tons (444.3 million gallons) of soybean oil-based biodiesel and Indonesia shipped 1.09 million tons (327.2 million gallons) of biodiesel produced from palm oil into the EU-28, shipments from each of these countries slumped by around 70 percent in 2013. The reason was the imposition of import duties.

The European Council believed that the two countries were offering their commodities at below actual EU market value by keeping feedstock prices artificially low. For this reason, the EU imposed duties on Argentinian and Indonesian biodiesel (at a rate of 24.6 and 18.9 percent, respectively), which resulted in an almost complete collapse of biodiesel deliveries from both countries.

According to Agrarmarkt Informations-Gesellschaft mbH (AMI), the EU Commission's recent decision to lower import duties on Argentinian biodiesel (from the current 22-25.7 down to 4.5-8.1 percent) is likely to lead to a sharp rebound in Argentinian deliveries. If the tariff rates on Indonesian biodiesel are also lowered in the wake of a decision that is still outstanding, a considerable amount of biodiesel is likely to flow onto the EU-28 market in the spring of 2018, creating pressure on prices and affecting the competitive position of European rapeseed oil-based biodiesel.