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8/3/2001(Business Times) - Palm oil prices, which saw gains of RM30 atonne yesterday, may see the uptrend moderate in the near term as thecurrent level of between RM1,200 and RM1,300 may start to deter freshuptake by traditional buyers, dealers say."Players are closely monitoring developments in the US market. . . .especially the rival oils," a trader told Business Times in Kuala Lumpuryesterday.The fundamentals however remain intact, with demand from big buyers likeIndia providing support for the prices at the RM1,200 level, he said.India is expected to report a lower output of vegetable oils this year inlight of an extended drought in the subcontinent. And with demand seenrising in the months through to Deepavali in November, palm oil isexpected to enjoy brisk business.Traders said recent developments in Indonesia also augur well for thesector, especially the republic's plan to reduce exports of the commodityto meet domestic demand.Indonesia produces about 7 million tonnes of palm oil a year, of which 3million tonnes are exported. Only Malaysia produces more of the commodity,at over 10 million tonnes.At the sound of the bell yesterday, the spot crude palm oil (CPO) futurescontract on the Malaysia Derivatives Exchange (MDEX) shot up to RM1,275 atonne. But profit-taking surfaced later in the day to trim the gain andspot August closed at RM1,262 a tonne for a net gain of RM30, as didSeptember futures at RM1,265.October meanwhile put on RM32 to RM1,268, and November RM31 to RM1,271.Total volume was a heavy 3,463 lots compared to 2,685 lots on Tuesday,while open interest stood at 11,263 contracts, up from 10,905 contracts.In the physical market, August South CPO was traded at RM1,275 a tonnecompared to Tuesday's RM1,245.

HYDERABAD, 8/2/2001 (Financial Times Information Limited) - ProvincialSecretary for Forests, Wildlife and Environment, Shams-ul-Haq Memon, hassaid that a programme was on the anvil to set up a pilot project forcoconut and oil palm and added that in order to introduce this cash crop,a research project was being established in Thatta. He said for thispurpose, a laboratory would also be established.He added this during the inspection of coconut experimental farm on MirpurSakro road. A delegation of Pakistan Coconut and Oil Palm PlantationSociety (PCOPPS) also accompanied the secretary.He expressed satisfaction over the increase in the coconut production forwhich the Pakistan Agriculture Research Council (PARC) had contributed alot. Memon said that time had come when the cultivation of coconut and oilpalm should be done on commercial basis. He disclosed that aninternational research organisation of Germany which was doing research oncoconut and oil palm had already been contacted by the Sindh forestdepartment and expressed the hope that a break through will be made inthis respect.He said that this experimental farm had been initially handed over to theSindh Coastal Development Authority (SCDA) where research on coconut andoil palm was being conducted with the cooperation of the federalgovernment. He, however, added that now this farm had been transferred tothe Sindh forest department. He stated, a lot of work had been done oncoconut by the forest department and its plants were also being sold inthe nurseries of the forest department in an around Thatta. He, however,said that for the time being no expert was available for research on oilpalm but added that a team of experts would be constituted to conductresearch on oil palm.The project director, Sindh forestry development project, Muneer AhmedAwan, told the delegation of PCOPPS that a campaign had been launched inThatta and its suburbs to motivate the growers about coconut plantation.He said that it was a cash crop and if mass production was carried out,its by-products could also be exported. He concluded during the on goingtree plantation campaign, arrangements had been made to distribute thecoconut saplings.

CHICAGO, 8/2/2001 (Financial Times, London) - Large areas of the EuropeanUnion's farmland could be turned over to the production of alternativefuels, whose use would become compulsory by 2005, under plans being drawnup by the European Commission.The proposals, scheduled for adoption in September, would force EUcountries to ensure that by 2005 at least 2 per cent of fuel used fortransport came from biofuels - produced from crops such as sugar beet andoilseeds as well as waste.This figure would rise by 0.75 percentage points every year until at least2009, when a compulsory target would be introduced for blending smallquantities of biofuels into conventional diesel and petrol. The goal isfor bio-fuels and other substitute fuels, including hydrogen, to make up20 per cent of fuel use in transport by 2020.Biofuels are manufactured from a range of agricultural products and evenwaste. Bioethanol, which can be used as an automotive fuel by itself ormixed with conventional fuels, can be produced from sugar beet, cereals ormaize. Biodiesel, the most commonly used bio-fuel, is usually producedfrom rapeseed oil.The initiative mirrors similar efforts in the US with fuel additiveethanol, primarily made from maize, begun in the 1970s under PresidentCarter. US bio-ethanol production will reach an estimated 10.5m tonnes in2003. The EU produced 968,000 tonnes of bio-fuels last year.The European draft law forms part of the Commission's drive to become lessdependent on imported fossil fuels and to cut emissions of gases that areblamed for global warming. It also tallies with the Commission's attemptsto shift the emphasis of EU farm policy further away from maximising foodoutput to supporting other rural activities and severing the link betweensubsidies and production."There is no doubt that the promotion of the use of biofuels in the EU isdesired at political level for the reasons of sustainable development, COreduction, security of supply and the additional positive influence onrural development and agriculture policy," the Commission says in a draftof the proposals.The Commission hopes that farmers will grow the raw materials for thesefuels on land taken out of commercial food use under the EU's compulsory"set-aside" programme. It predicts that up to 20m tonnes of biofuels couldbe produced on set-aside land, 7 per cent of EU petroleum productsconsumption.The main drawback is the cost. The Commission calculates the additionalcost of biodiesel over conventional oil-based diesel at about Euros 250(Pounds 154) per 1,000 litres with an oil price of Dollars 25 a barrel.To bridge this gap the Commission is proposing giving EU states the optionof reducing excise duties on fuel containing biofuels. Previous attemptsto grant this tax exemption have failed to win the backing of EUgovernments.Europia, the group representing most of the big oil companies in Europe,said biofuels could play a role as a complement to conventional fuels butwarned against forcing the technology through before wider research wasdone into the environmental, technological and economic implications."In principle we're not opposed, but we must go cautiously and do some R&Dbefore we start prescribing this sort of thing," said John Price, Europiaexecutive director.Environmental groups have also reacted cautiously to the plans, suggestingthey were largely being driven by farming interests and domestic politicsin certain EU states. They said they could detract from measures on thestatute books to reduce harmful emissions from fuels."All the studies show that the emissions profile of bio-fuels is not asgood as some of the cleaner fuels we've legislated for," said FrazerGoodwin of the European Federation for Transport and Environment.Some EU countries have already attempted to boost the biofuels sector,particularly Austria. Additional reporting by Chris Bowe in Chicago

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 2 (Reuters) - Malaysian palm oil futures retreated bymidday on Thursday due to overnight falls on the Chicago Board of Trade(CBOT).The benchmark third-month October contract was down 13 ringgit at 1,255ringgit ($330.26) a tonne after trading as high as 1,271 ringgit.Volume was thin at 844 lots, compared with 3,463 lots at the close onWednesday.Some traders said the market's uptrend remained intact because ofexpectations of lower output in the coming months and a stronger rupiahcurrency, which would make Indonesian palm oil less competitive.There was also talks private forecaster Ivan Wong will release hisestimates for July output, end-month stocks and exports on Friday.But some traders in Indonesia, the world's second largest palm oilproducer after Malaysia, said they had yet to factor in recent rupiahgains into prices."I would say our crude palm oil (CPO) prices are still about $5 cheapercompared with Malaysia's. By-products are even cheaper with the discountreaching more than $10," said one trader in Jakarta.Many Indonesian traders said they had to offer discounts because ofcongestion at ports such as Belawan and Dumai on the island of Sumatra,where most palm oil growing areas are found.Others said some exporters were offering more shipments from Jakarta onthe main island of Java and Pontianak on Borneo.Crude palm oil ex Belawan in Sumatra was quoted at $340/tonne for August,$345 for September and at $350 for October.In Malaysia, physical August crude palm oil for the southern and centralregions was offered at 1,255 ringgit a tonne against bids at 1,250. Tradeswere reported at 1,245 to 1,250 ringgit for both regions.Physical September CPO for the southern and central regions saw offers at1,265 ringgit against bids of 1,255. No deals were reported.Among refined products, August/September RBD palm oil was offered at $350a tonne and October/November/December at $355.Offers for August/September RBD olein were made at $370 andOctober/November/December at $375.August/September RBD palm stearin was offered at $290 andOctober/November/December at 292.50, while August palm fatty aciddistillate was offered at $215.

KUALA LUMPUR, July 31 (Bernama) -- Do FELDA plantations around the countryface the risk of being abandoned because of the lack of able-bodied labourto actively undertake planting, harvesting and estate managementactivities?

Kuala Lumpur, 02 August 2001(Business Times) - KUMPULAN Guthrie Bhd issignalling its intention to make oil palm its ticket to bigger things withthe group's ambitious US$368 million (US$1 = RM3.80) acquisition ofMinamas plantation in Indonesia.

Johor Baru, Thursday, August 2, 2001(The Star) - The Namibia TradeMinistry hopes to attract more Malaysian businessmen to invest in theAfrican country through two trade and investment seminars slated forOctober and November this year.Jakova Katuamba, commercial counsellor of the Namibia High Commission inMalaysia, said Namibia offered business opportunities to Malaysianinvestors, but many were unware of them.He said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Mahathir Mohamad and NamibiaPresident Dr Sam Nujoma were expected to grace the November event in KualaLumpur.Katuamba said about 25 Malaysian-owned firms were operating in thatcountry, particularly in the banking and mining sectors."This number is relatively small. We want to see more companies,especially big Malaysian entities, doing business in our country," he toldStar Business in a telephone interview from Kuala Lumpur yesterday.Katuamba said investors from the US, Britain, France and Germany hadalready made their presence felt in Namibia and that now was the time forAsians to be there, too.He said currently, Malaysia, Singapore, China and Hong Kong investors werethe only ones from Asia, and the Namibian government would like to seemore Asian foreign direct investment.Katuamba said sectors which investors could venture into weretextile-related activities, the hospitality industry, and food-basedprocessing, especially of fish, beef, game, fruits and vegetables.He said Namibia was strong in agriculture, especially in fruitcultivation. The country exports grapes, papayas, apples and oranges tomost European countries.Katuamba said Namibia also wanted to attract oil palm companies fromMalaysia to start plantations in the northern district of the country,which has about 20,000ha of land available.He said Malaysian oil palm companies could use Namibia as a centre topromote palm oil to other African states.Kutuamba said Namibia, with an area of 29,000 sq km composed of 13districts and 1.8 million population, was one of the most stable Africancountries politically and economically.He said foreign investors had a choice of forming joint-venture companieswith their Namibian partners or they could own 100% stake in companies.Katuamba said Namibia could act as an entry point for Malaysianbusinessmen to penetrate other African states like Angola, Botswana, SouthAfrica and Zimbabwe.

Hamburg, Jul 31, 2001 (OIL WORLD FLASH) - Palm oil prices are rallying onaccount of declining Malaysian stocks. Exports in July were again sharplyabove a year ago. In its announcement today, SGS pegged bulk exports ofMalaysian palm oil and lauric oils in July at 932 Thd T. This is down by7% from a month earlier, but up steeply by 212 Thd T or 30% from a yearago. India was the key destination with 201 Thd T, followed by theEuropean Union 186 Thd T, China 94 Thd T and Pakistan 88 Thd T. Malaysianpalm oil production in July remained below earlier expectations. Tradesources indicate that produc-tion may probably be largely unchanged nearthe 925 Thd T achieved in June. If that is confirmed, total Malaysian palmoil stocks would probably be only as low as 910-950 Thd T as of end-Julyvis-a-vis 1031 a month and 1075 Thd T a year ago. If also Augustproduction is curbed below expectations, it will keep Malaysian palm oilstocks sharply below earlier expectations. Much will also depend on futurepalm oil import demand from India, China, Pakistan, Europe and othercountries. The combination of a pronounced slowing-down of yields andproduction coupled with high export demand has resulted in a sharp declinein Malaysian palm oil stocks below the year-ago level. The outlook forOct/Dec 2001 is very bullish as the comparatively low stocks as ofend-September coupled with a decline in Malaysian palm oil productionbelow the year-ago level would sizably reduce Malaysian exportavailabilities below the year-ago level. We expect Malaysian palm oilprices to rally above soybean oil on the world market sometime within thenext 2-4 months.

Kuala Lumpur, 02 August 2001(Business Times) - PALM oil prices, which sawgains of RM30 a tonne yesterday, may see the uptrend moderate in the nearterm as the current level of between RM1,200 and RM1,300 may start todeter fresh uptake by traditional buyers, dealers say.

Kuala Lumpur, 7/31/2001(soyatech) - RISING global demand, compounded byfalling supply of edible oils, is likely to continue to push palm oilprices higher for the next year and a half.And as the leading producer of palm oil accounting for half the world'stotal supply, Malaysia can look to at least one bright spot in the economyas electronic exports continue to falter.Crude palm oil (CPO) prices have shot up from 10-year lows and doubledtheir levels from the start of this year.Most of the gains were seen in the last month, when benchmark three-monthCPO futures jumped from around RM800 per tonne to peak at RM1,200 pertonne last week before falling back closer to RM1,100. Prices recoveredthis week, and are expected to keep tracing a rising trend despite minorcorrections.A stronger currency for Indonesia, the next largest oil palm producer andMalaysia's nearest competitor, is expected to help Malaysian CPO prices inthe near term. A seasonal increase in demand over the next two months fromIndia in preparation for the Indian New Year, Deepavali, will also boostMalaysian CPO price, which is expected to be strongly supported at theRM1,100 levels, traders said.'I am revising my estimate of average prices up to the end of next yearfrom US$350 to US$400 per tonne,' said Hamdan Abdul Majeed, plantationsanalyst at HSBC Securities.Citing data from the trade magazine Oil World, Mr Hamdan said the combineddemand from the main palm oil consumers - China, India and Pakistan - isexpected to increase by close to 23 per cent to 10.6 million tonnes by2005. CPO production, on the other hand, is expected to slow in the mediumterm due to the downtrend in biological yields, slower to mature newplantings and lower yielding crops as a result of reduced fertiliser use.Faced with languishing prices and rising inventories over the last twoyears, palm oil producers resorted to reducing fertiliser use in order tocut costs.Malaysia's palm oil production fell by 6.1 per cent month-on-month in Junethis year, the first decline in three months. The Malaysian Oil PalmBoard's unofficial estimates on Tuesday put July's production at under onemillion tonnes for the first time in two years.Despite the fall in production, exports continue to increase, following an11 per cent rise in June.The mismatch in production and sales has helped reduce inventories.Malaysia's stock of palm oil peaked at 1.5 million tonnes last November,and fell to just over one million tonnes by June.Forecasters estimate current stocks to be around 0.95 million tonnes,three times the 0.3 million tonnes seen in the first half of 1998, whenCPO prices were RM2,400 per tonne.Malaysian Primary Industries Minister Lim Keng Yaik has exhorted producersto sell existing stocks instead of hoarding in the hope of getting higherprices. An extremely weak ringgit in 1998 - the RM-US$ exchange rates was20 per cent below today's levels - contributed to the high prices for CPO,which is traded in US dollars.The effect of rising CPO prices on actual economic growth will, however,be minimal. 'Palm oil accounts for 33 per cent of the agricultural sectorand 0.03 per cent of GDP growth,' said economist Lee Heng Guie of HLGSecurities. He expects the agricultural sector to grow by 5 per cent thisyear.Plantation stocks in the stock market will feel a more direct impact. Theentire sector is likely to be re-rated as companies revise their earningsupwards.An added bonus is the fact that as US dollar earners, plantations alsostand to gain in the event of a devaluation of the ringgit.Plantation companies expecting strong earnings in the current and nextfinancial year could see a bigger windfall if poor weather conditionsreduce soybean crops.'If El Nino hits the planting season this year and the next, prices arelikely to overshoot current forecasts,' said HSBC's Mr Hamdan, who has hadan overweight recommendation on the sector from as early as February thisyear.

USA, 7/31/2001

30 July 2001 (Business Times) - PRIMARY Industries Minister Datuk Seri DrLim Keng Yaik says the long-term outlook of the palm oil industry remainsbright despite the current difficulties it is facing.