Berita Arkib

Palm oil demand may be restrained next year, as supply shortages triggered by unfavourable weather, infrastructure issues and the Covid-19 pandemic push prices up further, analysts told a virtual palm oil conference on Thursday.

Crude palm oil (CPO) futures traded firm at Rs 880.20 per 10 kg on December 3 as participants increased their long position as seen by the open interest. Malaysian palm oil futures gained 0.39 percent to settle at 3,329 Ringgits on Bursa Malaysia Bhd

Malaysia's palm oil inventory was likely to have fallen 2% month-on-month (m-o-m) to 1.54 million tonnes at end-November, the lowest for the month since 2004, due to lower production, said CGS-CIMB Research.

Huge import of soybean oil from Nepal is hurting the domestic refiners and farmers and is causing revenue loss to the government, the Solvent Extractors'' Association of India (SEA) said on Thursday.

The move follows the rise in CPO export duty on Nov. 30. The export duty was raised to $33/mt from $3/mt, as the reference price on CPO exports in December was calculated higher at $870.77/mt.

Indonesia will impose higher levies on crude palm oil (CPO) starting Dec. 10, an official document showed on Thursday, a move that could impact demand next year as it seeks to generate funds for its ambitious palm-based biodiesel programme.

Malaysian palm oil futures ended 1% lower on Wednesday as weaker rival Dalian oils eclipsed support from forecasts of tight supply, with lower-than-expected biodiesel consumption in Indonesia further hitting sentiment. The benchmark palm oil contract for February delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange closed 34 ringgit, or 1.02%, lower to 3,313 ringgit ($813.01) a tonne, declining for a second session in three.

FITCH Ratings Inc expects crude palm oil (CPO) prices to decline from current levels and assumes an average of US$560 (RM2,280) per tonne for 2021, although CPO prices are performing above expectations this year.

The Philippines has been advised to push for a more doable sectoral bilateral trade agreement with the US before rolling to a more comprehensive free trade agreement, if not push for a wider US-ASEAN FTA under the new Biden administration.

The agreement includes reduced tariffs on exports from Israel to Ukraine, as well as on products imported to Israel. It provides free access to the Ukrainian market on many items that until now were subject to customs tax, including machinery, medical equipment, plastic and rubber products, chemicals, fruits and vegetables, and more.

The Philippines' domestic bioethanol reference price fell to 56.05 Philippine pesos/litre ($1,167/m³) in the first half of November, down from P56.27/l in the second half of October and P63.70/l in the first half of November 2019, according to the national Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA).

The palm oil industry needs to formulate a new strategy in order to face the challenges to business created by the COVID-19 pandemic, chairman of the Indonesian Palm Oil Association (Gapki), Joko Supriyono, said.