20.03.2019 (The Edge Markets MY) - KUALA LUMPUR (March 20): Malaysian palm oil futures rose on Wednesday to a two-week high, buoyed by expectations of slowing production growth and improved exports, charting a fourth straight session of gains.

The benchmark third-month palm oil contract on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange climbed 1.6% to 2,164 ringgit (US$532.35) a tonne, reversing last week's losses.

"The futures seem to be riding on expectations of slower growth in production," a Kuala Lumpur-based trader said, citing updates from plantations that a heat wave was affecting output.

 A bumper harvest last year in Malaysia and Indonesia, the world's major producers, had flushed the market with palm oil and dampened prices.

Stockpile concerns were further fanned, after the European Union announced plans to phase out use of palm oil in renewable transport fuel by 2030.

Exports of Malaysian palm oil products for March 1-20 rose 0.8% to 925,431 tonnes, from 918,047 tonnes shipped during Feb 1-20, cargo surveyor Societe Generale de Surveillance said on Wednesday.

Independent inspection company AmSpec Agri Malaysia however reported a 2.3% fall in exports for the same period.

 Another trader said there was some short covering, as the market had fallen last week and there was positive sentiment building as Malaysia and Indonesia considered retaliatory action against the EU.

Palm oil dropped 2.8% last week.

Wang Tao, a Reuters market analyst for commodities and energy technicals said a break above 2,155 ringgit could lead palm oil to a gain to 2,190 ringgit.

The Chicago soybean oil was last up 0.4%.

The Dalian Commodity Exchange soyoil contract was up 0.4%, while palm olein contract rose 1%.   

 Palm, soy and crude oil prices at 1122 GMT

 Contract                      Month       Last      Change      Low      High      Volume

 MY PALM OIL             APR9       2095      +35.00      2047      2099        500

 MY PALM OIL             MAY9       2128      +36.00      2081      2137      9046

 MY PALM OIL             JUN9       2162      +33.00      2119       2172    22394

 CHINA PALM OLEIN  MAY9       4486      +42.00     4446       4486    418932

 CHINA SOYOIL          MAY9       5558      +22.00     5506       5564    289882

 CBOT SOY OIL          MAY9       29.37       +0.13      29.2        29.4        6086

 INDIA PALM OIL        MAR9     528.80       +5.10   524.20     539.4       1374

 INDIA SOYOIL           APR9       741.7        +3.25    738.2    742.35       7380

 NYMEX CRUDE        APR9        58.50        -0.53     58.39      59.12        710

 (US$1 = 4.0650 ringgit)