MARKET DEVELOPMENT
VEGOILS-Palm Oil Almost Flat, Industry Data in Focus
VEGOILS-Palm Oil Almost Flat, Industry Data in Focus
10/05/2013 (Reuters) - Malaysian palm oil futures were little changed on Thursday, trading in a tight range as investors held off on risky bets ahead of key data due this week.
Industry regulator the Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB) will release official stocks and output data for April on Friday, while cargo surveyors will issue export figures for May 1-10.
A Reuters survey showed April stocks likely fell 6.1 percent from March to a nine-month low of 2.04 million tonnes.
"Traders are waiting for MPOB and exports data for more clues. Hopefully we will be able to see a clearer direction then. The market is facing a resistance level around 2,300 ringgit and support at 2,250 ringgit," said a trader with a local commodities brokerage in Kuala Lumpur.
The benchmark July contract on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange closed nearly flat at 2,288 ringgit ($770) per tonne, after trading in a 2,271 to 2,292 range. Prices climbed as high as 2,294 ringgit on Wednesday, a level last seen on April 30.
Total traded volumes stood at 20,076 lots of 25 tonnes each, lower than the average 35,000 lots.
Technicals showed palm oil faces a resistance at 2,295 ringgit per tonne, and only a break above that level could lead to a further gain to 2,335 ringgit, said Reuters market analyst Wang Tao.
Palm oil investors will also study exports data for the first 10 days of May to gauge restocking demand ahead of Ramadan, the Islamic holy month that starts in July this year.
Malaysian exports fell 5.6 percent in April from a month ago, according to cargo surveyor Societe Generale de Surveillance. Surveyor Intertek Testing Services reported a 4.3 percent decline for the same period.
In other markets, Brent crude fell below $104 a barrel on Thursday as rising fuel supplies and faltering demand pointed to a growing surplus of oil worldwide.
In vegetable oil markets, U.S. soyoil for July delivery gained 0.3 percent in late Asian trade. The most-active September soybean oil contract on the Dalian Commodities Exchange lost 0.4 percent.
Palm, soy and crude oil prices at 1005 GMT
Contract Month Last Change Low High Volume
MY PALM OIL MAY3 2289 +26.00 2280 2289 104
MY PALM OIL JUN3 2279 -4.00 2266 2282 761
MY PALM OIL JUL3 2288 -1.00 2271 2292 10706
CHINA PALM OLEIN SEP3 5966 -4.00 5944 6008 363968
CHINA SOYOIL SEP3 7366 -30.00 7356 7412 719732
CBOT SOY OIL JUL3 48.95 +0.13 48.76 48.99 3572
NYMEX CRUDE JUN3 96.12 -0.50 95.97 96.77 13677
Palm oil prices in Malaysian ringgit per tonne
CBOT soy oil in U.S. cents per pound
Dalian soy oil and RBD palm olein in Chinese yuan per tonne
Crude in U.S. dollars per barrel
($1=2.97 ringgit)
Industry regulator the Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB) will release official stocks and output data for April on Friday, while cargo surveyors will issue export figures for May 1-10.
A Reuters survey showed April stocks likely fell 6.1 percent from March to a nine-month low of 2.04 million tonnes.
"Traders are waiting for MPOB and exports data for more clues. Hopefully we will be able to see a clearer direction then. The market is facing a resistance level around 2,300 ringgit and support at 2,250 ringgit," said a trader with a local commodities brokerage in Kuala Lumpur.
The benchmark July contract on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange closed nearly flat at 2,288 ringgit ($770) per tonne, after trading in a 2,271 to 2,292 range. Prices climbed as high as 2,294 ringgit on Wednesday, a level last seen on April 30.
Total traded volumes stood at 20,076 lots of 25 tonnes each, lower than the average 35,000 lots.
Technicals showed palm oil faces a resistance at 2,295 ringgit per tonne, and only a break above that level could lead to a further gain to 2,335 ringgit, said Reuters market analyst Wang Tao.
Palm oil investors will also study exports data for the first 10 days of May to gauge restocking demand ahead of Ramadan, the Islamic holy month that starts in July this year.
Malaysian exports fell 5.6 percent in April from a month ago, according to cargo surveyor Societe Generale de Surveillance. Surveyor Intertek Testing Services reported a 4.3 percent decline for the same period.
In other markets, Brent crude fell below $104 a barrel on Thursday as rising fuel supplies and faltering demand pointed to a growing surplus of oil worldwide.
In vegetable oil markets, U.S. soyoil for July delivery gained 0.3 percent in late Asian trade. The most-active September soybean oil contract on the Dalian Commodities Exchange lost 0.4 percent.
Palm, soy and crude oil prices at 1005 GMT
Contract Month Last Change Low High Volume
MY PALM OIL MAY3 2289 +26.00 2280 2289 104
MY PALM OIL JUN3 2279 -4.00 2266 2282 761
MY PALM OIL JUL3 2288 -1.00 2271 2292 10706
CHINA PALM OLEIN SEP3 5966 -4.00 5944 6008 363968
CHINA SOYOIL SEP3 7366 -30.00 7356 7412 719732
CBOT SOY OIL JUL3 48.95 +0.13 48.76 48.99 3572
NYMEX CRUDE JUN3 96.12 -0.50 95.97 96.77 13677
Palm oil prices in Malaysian ringgit per tonne
CBOT soy oil in U.S. cents per pound
Dalian soy oil and RBD palm olein in Chinese yuan per tonne
Crude in U.S. dollars per barrel
($1=2.97 ringgit)