15/12/2011 (Reuters) - Palm futures reversed earlier losses to close almost 2 percent higher on Wednesday, as bargain hunters entered the market and comparative oils helped ofset persistent doubts over the euro zone debt crisis.

Benchmark February palm oil futures on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange ended 1.7 percent higher at 3,051 Malaysian ringgit ($960) per tonne.  

Traded volumes for the February palm contract were at 13,556 lots of 25 tonnes each, compared with 9,957 lots on Tuesday. 

"There are quite a lot of buyers below the 3,000 level," said a Kuala Lumpur-based trader. "We saw a lot of physical buying coming in." 

"For the short-term, the bottom has been reached," he added.

Prices earlier slipped to 2,980 ringgit, matching a level hit in the previous session, which was the lowest since Nov. 3. 

In broader markets, the euro hit an 11-month low against the dollar and stocks eased after the Federal Reserve warned Europe's sovereign debt crisis could hurt the U.S. economy but failed to signal fresh action to stimulate growth.

Palm prices have come under pressure this week after inventory data from top producer Malaysia came in above market expectations.

"Palm oil stocks topped expectations in November, which may cap the near-term upside for CPO price," Ivy Ng Lee Fang, an analyst at CIMB, said in a note. "Weaker exports and lower domestic usage were behind the higher stockpile."

"We continue to predict a drop in CPO price from 2Q12 onwards when La Nina concerns subside."

Traders found additional support from a possible impact on output due to the rainy season in top Southeast Asian producing countries.

Earlier this week, the state weather agency of number one palm producer Indonesia warned of floods in top producing regions Kalimantan and Sumatra.

"Malaysia has been raining quite heavily," the trader added. "We are looking at floods nearly every day."

Exports of Indonesian palm oil for November rose 42.5 percent, according to Reuters calculations based on data from an industry source.

In comparative oils, U.S. corn and soy fell, giving up the last session's modest gains as Europe's unresolved debt crisis weighed.

China's most active May 2012 soybean oil contract rose slightly but remained near two-week lows.

Crude oil fell, pressured by anxiety about the global economy.

  Palm, soy and crude oil prices at 1041 GMT
                                                                                                 
  Contract                   Month    Last      Change     Low    High      Volume
  M'ASIA PALM OIL    DEC1    3030    +40.00      3020    3030             30
  M'ASIA PALM OIL     JAN2    3048    +47.00      2980    3051         1025
  M'ASIA PALM OIL     FEB2    3052    +50.00      2980    3052       13556
  M'ASIA PALM OIL    MAR2    3053    +46.00      2983    3053          3599
  DALIAN SOY OIL     SEP2    8746       -2.00      8714    8760     239142
  CBOT SOY OIL         JAN2    49.45     +0.20     49.10   49.56         5074
  NYMEX CRUDE       JAN2    99.55      -0.59     99.52  100.33     11026
                                                                                                 
  Palm oil prices in Malaysian ringgit per tonne
  CBOT soy oil in U.S. cents per pound
  Dalian soy oil in Chinese yuan per tonne
  Crude in U.S. dollars per barrel
  ($1 = 3.1816 Malaysian ringgit)