MARKET DEVELOPMENT
VEGOILS-Palm Oil Eases After Rally, Export Demand Caps Losses
VEGOILS-Palm Oil Eases After Rally, Export Demand Caps Losses
21/03/2013 (Reuters) - Malaysian palm oil futures edged lower on Tuesday as traders booked profits from a recent rally, although losses were trimmed by resilient exports and dry weather concerns in soy-producing U.S. Midwest.
Malaysian palm oil exports from Aug. 1 to 20 rose 10.3 percent to 880,979 tonnes from the 798,482 tonnes shipped during July 1 to 20, cargo surveyor Intertek Testing Services said on Tuesday.
The tropical oil rose on Monday to its highest since July 12 on concerns over lower soy yields that could lead to a smaller soybean oil supply, which may channel some demand to competing palm oil.
The benchmark November contract on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange eased 0.2 percent to close at 2,329 ringgit ($709) per tonne on Tuesday, after trading in the 2,287-2,343 ringgit range.
"We see some correction today from the recent market rally, and right now we will have to see if there's enough stimulus to keep prices above 2,300 ringgit," said a trader with a foreign commodities brokerage in Kuala Lumpur.
Total traded volume stood at 47,286 lots of 25 tonnes each, well above the usual 35,000 lots.
Technicals were bearish, suggesting palm oil may drop to 2,272 per tonne, as it has failed to break a 2,356 ringgit resistance, said Reuters market analyst Wang Tao.
While cargo surveyor data showed resilient demand for Malaysian palm oil, analysts said a weakening Indonesian rupiah could lure some of the overseas demand to the top producer.
"Demand for Indonesia palm oil is likely to recover with the rupiah falling to 10,500 per dollar for the first time since 2009, making palm oil relatively cheap to overseas buyers," said Singapore-based Phillip Futures in a Tuesday note.
In other markets, oil prices slipped towards $109 a barrel on Tuesday as investors took profits ahead of minutes from the U.S. Federal Reserve on the scaling back of its stimulus programme although unrest in Egypt and reduced Libyan oil product supply curtailed the losses.
In vegetable oil markets, the U.S. soyoil contract for December fell 1.2 percent in late Asian trade. The most-active January soybean oil contract on the Dalian Commodities Exchange lost 1.5 percent.
Palm, soy and crude oil prices at 1000 GMT
Contract Month Last Change Low High Volume
MY PALM OIL SEP3 2380 -13.00 2333 2397 717
MY PALM OIL OCT3 2347 -7.00 2305 2363 9377
MY PALM OIL NOV3 2329 -4.00 2287 2343 22939
CHINA PALM OLEIN JAN4 5540 -100.00 5522 5684 535970
CHINA SOYOIL JAN4 7134 -106.00 7116 7294 890202
CBOT SOY OIL DEC3 43.25 -0.53 43.00 43.82 8494
NYMEX CRUDE SEP3 106.63 -0.47 105.77 107.10 1971
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=3.287 Malaysian ringgit)
Malaysian palm oil exports from Aug. 1 to 20 rose 10.3 percent to 880,979 tonnes from the 798,482 tonnes shipped during July 1 to 20, cargo surveyor Intertek Testing Services said on Tuesday.
The tropical oil rose on Monday to its highest since July 12 on concerns over lower soy yields that could lead to a smaller soybean oil supply, which may channel some demand to competing palm oil.
The benchmark November contract on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange eased 0.2 percent to close at 2,329 ringgit ($709) per tonne on Tuesday, after trading in the 2,287-2,343 ringgit range.
"We see some correction today from the recent market rally, and right now we will have to see if there's enough stimulus to keep prices above 2,300 ringgit," said a trader with a foreign commodities brokerage in Kuala Lumpur.
Total traded volume stood at 47,286 lots of 25 tonnes each, well above the usual 35,000 lots.
Technicals were bearish, suggesting palm oil may drop to 2,272 per tonne, as it has failed to break a 2,356 ringgit resistance, said Reuters market analyst Wang Tao.
While cargo surveyor data showed resilient demand for Malaysian palm oil, analysts said a weakening Indonesian rupiah could lure some of the overseas demand to the top producer.
"Demand for Indonesia palm oil is likely to recover with the rupiah falling to 10,500 per dollar for the first time since 2009, making palm oil relatively cheap to overseas buyers," said Singapore-based Phillip Futures in a Tuesday note.
In other markets, oil prices slipped towards $109 a barrel on Tuesday as investors took profits ahead of minutes from the U.S. Federal Reserve on the scaling back of its stimulus programme although unrest in Egypt and reduced Libyan oil product supply curtailed the losses.
In vegetable oil markets, the U.S. soyoil contract for December fell 1.2 percent in late Asian trade. The most-active January soybean oil contract on the Dalian Commodities Exchange lost 1.5 percent.
Palm, soy and crude oil prices at 1000 GMT
Contract Month Last Change Low High Volume
MY PALM OIL SEP3 2380 -13.00 2333 2397 717
MY PALM OIL OCT3 2347 -7.00 2305 2363 9377
MY PALM OIL NOV3 2329 -4.00 2287 2343 22939
CHINA PALM OLEIN JAN4 5540 -100.00 5522 5684 535970
CHINA SOYOIL JAN4 7134 -106.00 7116 7294 890202
CBOT SOY OIL DEC3 43.25 -0.53 43.00 43.82 8494
NYMEX CRUDE SEP3 106.63 -0.47 105.77 107.10 1971
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=3.287 Malaysian ringgit)