Archived News

ISLAMABAD (March 21 2003) : The Pakistan Vansapati ManufacturersAssociation (PVMA) has turned down oil tankers' owners demand of 10percent increase in fares, saying upward revision in prices could bediscussed with them when they come for a meeting on March 25 in Karachi.

KUALA LUMPUR, March 18 (Bernama) -- Primary Industries Minister Datuk SeriDr Lim Keng Yaik said that the government is considering restructuring orwithdrawing the duty free policy on all exports of processed palm oilproducts to India.He said that this might be done as a result of India's policy in notreducing import duty on crude palm oil (CPO) which was announced in itsBudget at the end of February.

HONG KONG (March 19 2003) - Beijing has not yet issued import permits forBrazilian soya, stoking fears the government may be trying to cut inflowsof foreign beans many fear China has overbought, traders said on Tuesday.

KUALA LUMPUR (March 19 2003) - Malaysia's palm oil futures prices may fallsharply if war erupts in Iraq because of higher shipment charges affectingdemand, while the world's top producers are stepping up output, anIndonesian industry official said on Tuesday.

19 March, 2003 - MALAYSIA Derivatives Exchange Bhd (MDEX) may launch newpalm-oil based financial instruments in the near future following thesuccess of the crude palm oil (CPO) futures contracts.

19 March, 2003 - HIGH insurance cost and freight charges arising from aUS-Iraq war are expected to affect Malaysia’s palm oil prices.Primary Industries Minister Datuk Seri Dr Lim Keng Yaik said that if warbreaks out, ships plying West Asia will experience an increase in cost dueto higher insurance and freight charges.“When war breaks out, what do you think will happen? If prices go up,people will not buy because it is too expensive and if people don’t buy,what do you think will happen to prices?” he asked.Dr Lim was speaking to reporters in Kuala Lumpur after launching the14thannual Palm and Lauric Oils Conference and Exhibition: Price Outlook2003/2004 in Kuala Lumpur yesterday.US President George W. Bush has given Iraqi President Saddam Hussein anultimatum to leave Iraq in 48 hours or face war.Last year, one-fifth of Malaysia’s palm oil exports totalling 10.8 milliontonnes went to West Asian countries, including Jordan, Syria and Egypt.During the war in Afghanistan last year, freight charges were known tohave increased to as high as 30 per cent.“To a certain extent, shipments to Europe via the Suez Canal may also beaffected due to its close proximity to the region,” Dr Lim said.In his speech, Dr Lim said the improvement in prices to about RM1,600currently was also contributed by measures undertaken by the Government.“The introduction of a replanting incentive of RM1,000 per hectare tookaway 173,000ha, which deprived the market of 618,000 tonnes.”The minister called on the industry to strive to produce at least eighttonnes of oil per hectare, with an oil extraction rate of 25 per cent.Malaysia is the world’s biggest producer of palm oil and accounts for morethan half of global output.The country produced 11.9 million tonnes last year, of which 10.8 milliontonnes worth RM19.6 billion were exported to 140 countries.

KUALA LUMPUR (March 19 2003) : Coconut oil prices may rise to an averageof $445 a tonne this year FOB Philippines, up nearly 20 percent from lastyear because of falling output from the world's largest producer, anindustry source said on Tuesday.

BUENOS AIRES (March 18 2003) - Argentina's foreign minister plans to heada mission to China in April to talk about potential obstacles to tradingsoya with the Asian giant, its biggest soya buyer, a ministry officialsaid.

SAO PAULO (March 18 2003) - Farmers harvested 20 percent of Brazil'srecord soya crop as of Friday, compared with 26 percent last year at thattime, grains analysts Celeres/MPrado said on Monday.

ISLAMABAD (March 18 2003) : Oil truck owners' strike has resulted insuspension of palm oil supply to ghee industries across the country,leaving half of them closed, and industrialists apprehended that the restmight follow suit if the situation remained unchanged for a few more days.

KUALA LUMPUR (March 18 2003) - Edible oil imports by India, the world'sbiggest consumer of the commodity, are likely to fall 10 percent to450,000 tonnes in April after purchasing enough palm oil and soyaoil inMarch, traders said on Monday.

KIEV (March 18 2003) - Ukraine, which harvested 3.3 million tonnes ofsunflower seeds in 2002, saw its sunseed exports fall to 24,800 tonnes inFebruary from 50,000 tonnes in January, producers said on Monday.