01/03/2013 (Reuters) - Malaysian palm oil futures fell to a more-than-six-week low on Thursday, extending losses into a seventh straight session on bleak export data and improved weather in Latin America.

Losses were curtailed as India's national budget made no immediate decision on an import tax hike. India, the world's largest vegetable oil buyer, did not raise its import tax imposed in January to cut rising purchases from Malaysia and Indonesia, a move that could have hurt palm oil demand further.

Weaker demand for Malaysian palm oil product exports during February, which fell 9.1 percent to 1.33 million tonnes from 1.46 million tonnes in January, still weighed on the market.

"The market is on a bearish note after recent improvements in the South American weather, and export figures were not as good as everyone has expected," said a Singapore-based trader with a global commodities trading house.

"The market was expecting for the export tax to be increased. Now it stays the same there may be some selling pressure in the local market."    

India last month slapped a 2.5 percent import tax on crude palm oil and lifted a six-year-old freeze on base import prices, the benchmark to calculate import taxes on edible oils.

The benchmark May contract on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange fell 0.6 percent to close at 2,396 ringgit ($776) per tonne. Prices had slipped to 2,368 ringgit earlier, a level last seen on Jan. 14.

Total traded volume stood at 54,738 lots of 25 tonnes each, more than double the usual 25,000 lots.

Technicals showed Malaysian palm oil is expected to fall to 2,361 ringgit per tonne, said Reuters market analyst Wang Tao. A break below there would lead to a further loss to 2,306 ringgit, he said.      

Palm oil production in Malaysia, the world's No.2 producer, has started to slow but traders said that may not ease stocks by much due to slowing demand. Inventory level stood at 2.58 million tonnes in January.   

Another cargo surveyor, Societe Generale de Surveillance, reported a 8.8 percent drop in Malaysia's February exports after the market close.

Palm oil futures posted a 6.3 percent loss for February, the worst since September, and snapping two consecutive months of gains as prices were weighed down by the high palm oil stocks and improvements in South American weather that could increase soybean crop supply.

In other markets, Brent crude oil rose above $112 a barrel on Thursday, supported by renewed confidence that major centra banks would keep taking steps to support the global economy.

In competing vegetable oil markets, U.S. soyoil for May delivery edged down 0.4 percent in late Asian trade. The most-active September soybean oil contract on the Dalian Commodity Exchange closed 0.3 percent lower.

  Palm, soy and crude oil prices at 1010 GMT

  Contract        Month    Last   Change     Low    High  Volume
  MY PALM OIL      MAR3    2375   -15.00    2350    2381     758
  MY PALM OIL      APR3    2388   -12.00    2362    2411    4027
  MY PALM OIL      MAY3    2396   -14.00    2368    2422   20677
  CHINA PALM OLEIN SEP3    6624   -92.00    6622    6756  948238
  CHINA SOYOIL     SEP3    8288   -28.00    8264    8368  730114
  CBOT SOY OIL     MAY3   49.49    -0.18   49.28   49.80    6866
  NYMEX CRUDE      APR3   92.48    -0.28   92.42   93.18   15096

  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=3.09 ringgit)