18/12/2012 (Reuters) - Malaysian palm oil futures inched up on Monday, riding on rival soybean oil's gains after U.S. soy crushing data sent soybeans to a six-week peak.

Chicago soybeans hit their highest since Nov. 8 after data from the National Oilseed Processors Association showed U.S. soybean processors crushed the most soybeans in almost three years and on higher demand especially from top buyer China.

Soybean oil rose in tandem, supporting palm oil, a competing vegetable oil used to make products ranging from food to biofuels.

But gains were limited as concerns over high Malaysian stockpiles remained, especially as the latest data pointed to signs of slowing exports, although traders said easing production could help bring down stock levels.

"The market is up a bit on the back of Dalian and Chicago soybean oil," said a trader with a foreign commodities brokerage in Malaysia. "Malaysian palm production should come down this month, so inventory should probably go down a bit."

At the close, the benchmark March contract on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange had gained 0.3 percent, settling at 2,352 ringgit ($770) per tonne.

Total traded volumes stood at 30,806 lots of 25 tonnes each, much higher than the usual 25,000 lots.

Exports of Malaysian palm oil products for Dec. 1-15 fell 6.4 percent to 719,817 tonnes from 769,087 tonnes for the Nov. 1-15 period, cargo surveyor Intertek Testing Services said on Saturday.

Another cargo surveyor Societe Generale de Surveillance will issue data for the same period later on Monday.

Malaysia, the world's No.2 palm oil producer, will set its crude palm oil export tax for January at zero percent, a government circular showed on Monday, in a bid to spur shipments of the grade and bring down record stocks.   

In a bearish sign for palm oil, Brent crude edged below $108 a barrel on Monday as investors remained concerned over the progress of U.S. budget deficit reduction talks, countering support from signs of a brighter economic outlook in China.

In other vegetable oil markets, U.S. soyoil for January delivery edged up 0.5 percent. The most active May 2013 soybean oil contract on the Dalian Commodity Exchange closed 1.5 percent higher.

  Palm, soy and crude oil prices at 1007 GMT

  Contract        Month    Last   Change     Low    High  Volume
  MY PALM OIL      JAN3    2191    +1.00    2188    2215     795
  MY PALM OIL      FEB3    2280    +5.00    2265    2309    6552
  MY PALM OIL      MAR3    2352    +6.00    2332    2376   12627
  CHINA PALM OLEIN MAY3    6830   +82.00    6796    6882  548296
  CHINA SOYOIL     MAY3    8792  +126.00    8748    8824  552002
  CBOT SOY OIL     JAN3   50.22    +0.23   49.83   50.35    8407
  NYMEX CRUDE      JAN3   86.71    -0.02   86.64   87.25   11136

  Palm oil prices in Malaysian ringgit per tonne
  CBOT soy oil in U.S. cents per pound
  Dalian soy oil and RBD palm olein in Chinese yuan per tonne
  Crude in U.S. dollars per barrel
  ($1=3.06 Malaysian ringgit)