MARKET DEVELOPMENT
VEGOILS-Palm Oil Edges Lower, Rising Exports Cap Losses
VEGOILS-Palm Oil Edges Lower, Rising Exports Cap Losses
11/06/2013 (Reuters) - Malaysian palm oil futures edged lower on Monday as a fall in inventory levels missed expectations, although losses were capped by recovering demand for the edible oil.
The Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB) pegged the country's palm oil stocks at 1.82 million tonnes as of end-May, the lowest in nearly a year but below expectations of a bigger decline to 1.78 million tonnes.
Export demand remained supportive, however, and helped trim losses, with Malaysian palm oil shipments for June 1-10 rising as much as 10.3 percent to 419,035 tonnes from the same period a month ago, according to cargo surveyor Intertek Testing Services.
Another cargo surveyor, Societe Generale de Surveillance, reported a 6.1 percent increase for the same period.
"Exports were good but at the same time people were also pricing in stocks that fell slightly less than expected," said a trader with a local commodities brokerage in Malaysia. "Once production starts to pick up in the second half of the year, stocks may start to build up again."
The benchmark August contract on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange closed down 0.2 percent at 2,453 ($784) ringgit per tonne, after trading in between 2,441 and 2,470 ringgit.
Total traded volumes stood at 20,310 lots of 25 tonnes each, lower than the average 35,000 lots.
An improvement in Malaysia's palm oil shipments for the first 10 days of the month was supported by an increase in orders from India and Pakistan, where buyers were restocking ahead of Ramadan.
The holy month that starts in July typically sees higher consumption of edible oil as Muslims gather for communal meals.
In other markets, Brent crude dipped toward $104 per barrel on Monday as weak data from top energy consumer China muddied the outlook for oil demand, overshadowing the optimism stemming from a pickup in U.S. hiring last month.
In vegetable oil markets, U.S. soyoil for July fell 0.5 percent in late Asian trade. The Dalian Commodities Exchange is closed for a three-day holiday and will resume trading on Thursday.
Palm, soy and crude oil prices at 1011 GMT
Contract Month Last Change Low High Volume
MY PALM OIL JUN3 2420 +3.00 2420 2420 1
MY PALM OIL JUL3 2448 -4.00 2437 2461 1425
MY PALM OIL AUG3 2453 -4.00 2441 2470 10919
CBOT SOY OIL JUL3 48.28 -0.25 48.14 48.58 4089
NYMEX CRUDE JUL3 95.59 -0.44 95.58 96.25 17178
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=3.127 ringgit)
The Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB) pegged the country's palm oil stocks at 1.82 million tonnes as of end-May, the lowest in nearly a year but below expectations of a bigger decline to 1.78 million tonnes.
Export demand remained supportive, however, and helped trim losses, with Malaysian palm oil shipments for June 1-10 rising as much as 10.3 percent to 419,035 tonnes from the same period a month ago, according to cargo surveyor Intertek Testing Services.
Another cargo surveyor, Societe Generale de Surveillance, reported a 6.1 percent increase for the same period.
"Exports were good but at the same time people were also pricing in stocks that fell slightly less than expected," said a trader with a local commodities brokerage in Malaysia. "Once production starts to pick up in the second half of the year, stocks may start to build up again."
The benchmark August contract on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange closed down 0.2 percent at 2,453 ($784) ringgit per tonne, after trading in between 2,441 and 2,470 ringgit.
Total traded volumes stood at 20,310 lots of 25 tonnes each, lower than the average 35,000 lots.
An improvement in Malaysia's palm oil shipments for the first 10 days of the month was supported by an increase in orders from India and Pakistan, where buyers were restocking ahead of Ramadan.
The holy month that starts in July typically sees higher consumption of edible oil as Muslims gather for communal meals.
In other markets, Brent crude dipped toward $104 per barrel on Monday as weak data from top energy consumer China muddied the outlook for oil demand, overshadowing the optimism stemming from a pickup in U.S. hiring last month.
In vegetable oil markets, U.S. soyoil for July fell 0.5 percent in late Asian trade. The Dalian Commodities Exchange is closed for a three-day holiday and will resume trading on Thursday.
Palm, soy and crude oil prices at 1011 GMT
Contract Month Last Change Low High Volume
MY PALM OIL JUN3 2420 +3.00 2420 2420 1
MY PALM OIL JUL3 2448 -4.00 2437 2461 1425
MY PALM OIL AUG3 2453 -4.00 2441 2470 10919
CBOT SOY OIL JUL3 48.28 -0.25 48.14 48.58 4089
NYMEX CRUDE JUL3 95.59 -0.44 95.58 96.25 17178
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=3.127 ringgit)