* Palm gains after 2 sessions of losses, but sees 2nd weekly loss

* Short-covering seen on better export demand -trader

* Exports for May 1-20 rise 6-9 percent -ITS & SGS

* Palm may test support at 2,500 rgt/t -technicals

(Updates latest prices)

23/05/2016 (Reuters) - Benchmark Malaysian palm oil futures rose on short-covering on Friday following two sessions of losses and as surveys showed exports picked up in May, but lost more than 2 percent on the week, its second straight weekly decline.

Malaysian palm oil shipments rose 6-9 percent during May 1-20, lifted by exports to India and Pakistan on demand ahead of the Ramadan festival, data from two cargo surveyors showed on Friday.

The Muslim holy season of Ramadan, which starts in early June this year, entails a month of fasting and feasting. This means demand for palm oil used in cooking is typically higher in palm consuming markets such as India, Pakistan and the Middle East.

The palm oil contract for August delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange rose 0.3 percent to 2,527 ringgit ($620) per tonne at the close of trade, recovering from an intraday low of 2,505 ringgit, which was also a fresh 10-week low for the commodity.

Palm however lost 2.6 percent this week, a second consecutive weekly loss.

Traded volumes stood at 49,019 lots of 25 tonnes each on Friday compared with a 2015 daily average of 44,600.

"At current levels the trade is aware that fundamentals remain bullish and will remain so next month with the fasting month," said a trader in Kuala Lumpur.

"Thus the short-covering at current low levels reflects the above scenario."

Palm oil may however test a support at 2,500 ringgit per tonne, with a good chance of breaking below this level and falling further towards the next support at 2,484 ringgit, a technical analysis by Wang Tao, Reuters' market analyst for commodities and energy technicals, showed.

In related vegetable oils, the Chicago Board of Trade soyoil contract for August was down 0.3 percent, while the September soybean oil contract on the Dalian Commodity Exchange lost 1.3 percent.

Palm, soy and crude oil prices at 1019 GMT:

Contract Month Last Change Low High Volume

MY PALM OIL JUN6 2558 +6.00 2544 2569 256

MY PALM OIL JUL6 2548 +11.00 2522 2559 8638

MY PALM OIL AUG6 2527 +8.00 2505 2539 23885

CHINA PALM OLEIN SEP6 5146 -16.00 5036 5164 750316

CHINA SOYOIL SEP6 5902 -76.00 5814 5932 678872

CBOT SOY OIL JUL6 31.8 +5.20 31.74 31.99 7987

INDIA PALM OIL MAY6 531.90 +5.20 529.30 533.7 1096

INDIA SOYOIL MAY6 630.7 +2.05 629.9 631 740

NYMEX CRUDE JUN6 48.33 +0.17 48.19 48.79 1836

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
India soy oil in Indian rupee per 10 kg
Crude in U.S. dollars per barrel

($1 = 4.0780 ringgit)
($1 = 67.4250 Indian rupees)
($1 = 6.5452 Chinese yuan)