07/11/2017 (The Edge Markets MY) - KUALA LUMPUR (Nov 7): Malaysian palm oil futures rose in early trade on Tuesday, on track to snap three earlier losing sessions, as palm gained on overnight strength in Chicago Board of Trade's (CBOT) soyoil.

Palm was also supported by Monday's surge in crude oil prices, but gains could be capped by a stronger Malaysian ringgit, traders said.

A stronger ringgit, palm's currency of trade, makes the edible oil more expensive for holders of foreign currencies. The ringgit was last up 0.1% against the U.S. dollar at 4.2250.

The benchmark palm oil contract for January delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange was up 0.3% at 2,791 ringgit (US$660.59) a tonne at the midday break.

Traded volumes stood at 14,250 lots of 25 tonnes each at noon.

"Overnight gains in rival oilseed soy and stronger crude oil may renew some buying interest," said a futures trader from Kuala Lumpur, referring to CBOT soyoil and gains in crude oil prices.

Oil prices rose as much as 3.5% on Monday, hitting their highest since mid-2015, on the back of a corruption crackdown in Saudi Arabia and as the U.S. rig count fell.

Another trader added that while palm was up on soyoil's overnight strength, a stronger ringgit was seen "checking palm's upside."

Palm oil is affected by movements in related oils, as they compete for a share in the global vegetable oils market. The December soybean oil contract on the Chicago Board of Trade rose 0.9% on Monday, but was trading flat around 0455 GMT on Tuesday.

Crude oil also affects palm prices as the vegetable oil is used as feedstock to make biodiesel as a fuel substitute.

Palm oil looks neutral in a range of 2,779-2,808 ringgit per tonne, according to Wang Tao, a Reuters market analyst for commodities and energy technicals.

In other related edible oils, the January soybean oil contract on the Dalian Commodity Exchange was up 0.7%, while the January palm olein contract on Dalian rose 0.5%.  

 Palm, soy and crude oil prices at 0455 GMT

Contract                               Month     Last        Change    Low        High       Volume

MY PALM OIL                       OV7       2756       -16.00      2755       2794       309

MY PALM OIL                       EC7       2774       +6.00       2774       2792       314

MY PALM OIL                       JAN8      2791       +8.00       2789       2808       7178

CHINA PALM OLEIN             JAN8       5656       +30.00     5614       5680       190176

CHINA SOYOIL                    JAN8       6130       +40.00     6090       6156       161298

CBOT SOY OIL                    DEC7      34.73      +0.00       34.66      34.87      5591

INDIA PALM OIL                   NOV7      552.70    +2.10       552.30    554         99

INDIA SOYOIL                     NOV7      692.9       +2.00       692.2     694.8       810

NYMEX CRUDE                   DEC7      57.35       +0.00       57.16     57.44       22424

 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

(US$1 = 4.2250 ringgit)

(US$1 = 64.8200 Indian rupees)

(US$1 = 6.6210 Chinese yuan)