MARKET DEVELOPMENT
VEGOILS-Palm Edges Lower on Prospect of Higher Output
VEGOILS-Palm Edges Lower on Prospect of Higher Output
(Updates prices)
* Higher output prospects offset by hopes demand will rise
* Malaysian April 1-20 palm output up 17 pct - growers'estimates
* Palm oil to retest support at 2,145 ringgit - technicals
24/04/2015 (Reuters) - Malaysian palm oil futures ended lower on Thursday on the prospect of another month of strong crude palm production in the world's second-largest grower, although hopes for firm export demand provided some support.
The Malaysian Palm Oil Association, a group of growers, forecast that output rose 17 percent from April 1-20 compared with the same period a month before. In March, Malaysian output surged 33.3 percent to 1.49 million tonnes, the biggest ever month-on-month rise.
The growers' forecast reflects the tropical plant's seasonal output cycle, with supplies normally rising between April and June, traders say.
"Moving into April onwards, everyone knows the production will pick up. The inclination for prices to go down is there," said a trader with a foreign commodities brokerage in Kuala Lumpur.
"But we also saw some buying interest in April. We are waiting for the 25-days exports to get more leads on where prices need to go." Cargo surveyor Intertek Testing Services will release data on Malaysia's April 1-25 exports on Saturday.
The benchmark July contract on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives exchange closed at 2,159 ringgit ($596) a tonne on Thursday, slightly lower from 2,160 ringgit in the previous session. Prices were choppy between 2,136 and 2,164 ringgit.
Total traded volume stood at 42,451 lots of 25 tonnes, above the usual 35,000 lots.
Technicals show that palm oil may retest support at 2,145 ringgit per tonne, as indicated by a rising wedge and a Fibonacci retracement analysis, Reuters market analyst Wang Tao said.
Elsewhere, industry analysts say farmers in China could slash the amount of land they use to grow soybeans by as much as 15 percent in 2015/16 due to uncertainty over how a new subsidy scheme will work.
A sixth straight drop in acreage could boost edible oil imports by China, the world's biggest soybean buyer, and a major customer for palm oil.
The U.S. July soyoil contract rose 0.5 percent in late Asian trade, while the most active September soybean oil contract on the Dalian Commodity Exchange gained 0.2 percent.
Oil prices steadied on Thursday as news of another steep rise in U.S. crude inventories countered concerns over the security of Middle East supplies due to an escalating conflict in Yemen.
Dalian soy oil and RBD palm olein in Chinese yuan per tonne
India soy oil in Indian rupee per 10 kg
Crude in U.S. dollars per barrel
($1 = 3.6250 Malaysian ringgit)
($1 = 6.1980 Chinese yuan)
($1 = 63.21 Indian rupees)
* Higher output prospects offset by hopes demand will rise
* Malaysian April 1-20 palm output up 17 pct - growers'estimates
* Palm oil to retest support at 2,145 ringgit - technicals
24/04/2015 (Reuters) - Malaysian palm oil futures ended lower on Thursday on the prospect of another month of strong crude palm production in the world's second-largest grower, although hopes for firm export demand provided some support.
The Malaysian Palm Oil Association, a group of growers, forecast that output rose 17 percent from April 1-20 compared with the same period a month before. In March, Malaysian output surged 33.3 percent to 1.49 million tonnes, the biggest ever month-on-month rise.
The growers' forecast reflects the tropical plant's seasonal output cycle, with supplies normally rising between April and June, traders say.
"Moving into April onwards, everyone knows the production will pick up. The inclination for prices to go down is there," said a trader with a foreign commodities brokerage in Kuala Lumpur.
"But we also saw some buying interest in April. We are waiting for the 25-days exports to get more leads on where prices need to go." Cargo surveyor Intertek Testing Services will release data on Malaysia's April 1-25 exports on Saturday.
The benchmark July contract on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives exchange closed at 2,159 ringgit ($596) a tonne on Thursday, slightly lower from 2,160 ringgit in the previous session. Prices were choppy between 2,136 and 2,164 ringgit.
Total traded volume stood at 42,451 lots of 25 tonnes, above the usual 35,000 lots.
Technicals show that palm oil may retest support at 2,145 ringgit per tonne, as indicated by a rising wedge and a Fibonacci retracement analysis, Reuters market analyst Wang Tao said.
Elsewhere, industry analysts say farmers in China could slash the amount of land they use to grow soybeans by as much as 15 percent in 2015/16 due to uncertainty over how a new subsidy scheme will work.
A sixth straight drop in acreage could boost edible oil imports by China, the world's biggest soybean buyer, and a major customer for palm oil.
The U.S. July soyoil contract rose 0.5 percent in late Asian trade, while the most active September soybean oil contract on the Dalian Commodity Exchange gained 0.2 percent.
Oil prices steadied on Thursday as news of another steep rise in U.S. crude inventories countered concerns over the security of Middle East supplies due to an escalating conflict in Yemen.
Palm, soy and crude oil prices at 1017 GMT
Contract Month Last Change Low High Volume
MY PALM OIL MAY5 2175 -4.00 2161 2176 681
MY PALM OIL JUN5 2169 -1.00 2148 2175 3147
MY PALM OIL JUL5 2159 -1.00 2136 2164 25045
CHINA PALM OLEIN SEP5 4880 -18.00 4872 4926 956542
CHINA SOYOIL SEP5 5674 +12.00 5632 5718 1031080
CBOT SOY OIL JUL5 31.89 -0.60 31.73 32.00 8660
INDIA PALM OIL APR5 439.00 -0.60 437.20 440.00 509
INDIA SOYOIL JUN5 588.50 +3.90 583.80 588.60 33440
NYMEX CRUDE JUN5 55.91 -0.26 55.76 56.58 29184
Dalian soy oil and RBD palm olein in Chinese yuan per tonne
India soy oil in Indian rupee per 10 kg
Crude in U.S. dollars per barrel
($1 = 3.6250 Malaysian ringgit)
($1 = 6.1980 Chinese yuan)
($1 = 63.21 Indian rupees)