15/07/2011 (Bloomberg) - Okomu Oil Palm Plc (OKOMUOIL), a Nigerian processor of the kernels, rose to a 14-month high on expectations that improved rainfall in the West African nation will boost output.

The stock gained 40 kobo, or 2.5 percent, to 16.50 naira by the 2:30 p.m. close in Lagos, the strongest since May 2010.

“Palm fruits get bigger during the rainy season and investors hope Okomu is taking advantage of this weather to extract as much oil as possible from the fruits,” Bunmi Njugo, a Lagos-based analyst with Stanbic IBTC Bank Plc, said by phone.

Nigeria will experience increased rainfall this year, the meteorologic department has warned. Rainfall on July 10 led to flooding in Lagos, Nigeria’s coastal commercial capital.

Okomu, which has been producing palm oil for 35 years in Okomu-Udo in Edo state, midwestern Nigeria, has been adding an average of 5,000 hectares of the trees a year, and still has room for expansion, chairman Gbenga Oyebode said on June 29.