AMSTERDAM, Nov 23 (Reuters) - European palm oil consumers with coveragethrough January are wary of buying more expensive forward positions,mindful of soyoil values amid talk of further price rises, traders said onFriday.Benchmark Malaysian futures rose about eight percent in the past weekand some traders are convinced the market is set for an extended bull run,but consumers were less convinced."There's been a good buying, both from specs and consumers," a Londontrader said, adding that India was a prominent buyer over the past 48hours."The charts look particularly positive on palm oil, everything looksset for another surge," he added.The benchmark Malaysia third-month February palm oil futures closedhigher at 1,182 ringgit a tonne on Friday, not far from key resistance of1,200. The next major target would be the peak of 1,315 ringgit touched onAugust 8, he said.Higher prices would be supported by fundamentals since global palm oiloutput is expected to decline in coming months, especially in Malaysia.October-December world production is due to fall by two percentyear-on-year and by six percent in the first three months of 2002,industry publication Oil World said this week.Another near-term trigger for higher prices could be on Monday whenestimates are due to be released for Malaysian exports during the first 25days of November, traders said.

PALM EYES RIVAL SOY OILPalm prices could rise further, but they are unlikely to see wild gainssince palm must compete with soy oil, a buyer at a British refiner said.The soy market could be restrained in coming months since big cropswere expected in South America.The discount of fob palm olien for December/March to South American fobsoy oil was currently around $25, down from $50 in the summer, he pointedout."Palm can't afford to lose its competitiveness to soy," the buyer said.The generous coverage held by most European consumers through Januaryand for some until March shows up in the discounts in nearby palm prices,traders pointed out.Crude palm oil was offered at $332.50 per tonne for November, $17.50cheaper than for January/March, while the discount for olein was$12.50-$15.00 [OILS/E]."There is no incentive to buy forward since every month as it becomesthe nearby month gets cheaper," the buyer said.Another trader said the weak euro was also a dampeninginfluence.The euro had slipped to $0.8797 by Friday afternoon from a recent highof 0.9120 on November 1, increasing the price Europeans must pay fordollar-denominated commodities.Some consumers have found it worthwhile to buy cheap nearby supplies andstore them, but tanks in Rotterdam were fairly full at the moment, a Dutchtrader said.