The Edge Markets (21/11/2018) - KUALA LUMPUR (Nov 21): Malaysian palm oil futures ended Wednesday's trade higher as a recovery in crude oil prices buoyed sentiment.

Palm oil prices are influenced by movements in crude oil, as the edible oil is used as feedstock to make biodiesel.

The benchmark palm oil contract for February delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange rose 1% at 2,006 ringgit (US$478.42) per tonne.

Trading volumes stood at 69,390 lots of 25 tonnes each at the close of trade. 

The recovery in crude oil prices lifted trading sentiment for palm, a Kuala Lumpur-based trader said.

Earlier the futures contract hit its lowest since August 2015, tracking an overnight plunge in crude oil prices.

Another trader saw the climb as a retracement as the market was still depressed, technically and fundamentally, due to high stocks and slowing exports.
 
Inventories in top producers — Indonesia and Malaysia — were expected to rise for the next two months, with demand unlikely to jump from key buyers, as palm oil solidifies in winter months.

Malaysia's palm oil exports fell 10.9% in the Nov 1-20 period according to independent inspection company AmSpec Agri Malaysia on Tuesday, while cargo surveyor Intertek Testing Services reported a drop of 3.2% in the same period. 

In other related edible oils, the Chicago December soybean oil contract climbed as much as 0.4%. 

On the Dalian Commodity Exchange, the January soybean oil contract rose up to 0.7%, but the January palm oil contract slipped as much as 1.2%.

Palm, soy, and crude oil prices as of 1139 GMT
    
 Contract                       Month   Last  Change   Low   High   Volume
 MY PALM OIL               DEC8    1839  +22.00   1780   1845     1327
 MY PALM OIL               JAN9    1936  +22.00   1875   1948    13125
 MY PALM OIL               FEB9    2006  +20.00   1949   2017    25523
 CHINA PALM OLEIN  JAN9    4164  -50.00    4126   4220   404382
 CHINA SOYOIL            JAN9    5436  +40.00   5342   5454   323044
 CBOT SOY OIL            DEC8   27.45   +0.11   27.32  27.54    3502
 INDIA PALM OIL          NOV8  506.40  +8.20  497.00  508.7   1081
 INDIA SOYOIL              DEC8   726.5   +4.40  720.15  729.5   10810
 NYMEX CRUDE          JAN9   54.36   +0.93   53.39  54.72   170679
 
* 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 = 4.1930 ringgit)
(US$1 = 71.42 Indian rupees) 
(US$1 = 6.94 Chinese yuan)

Read more at http://www.theedgemarkets.com/article/palm-crude-oil-recovery