MARKET DEVELOPMENT
VEGOILS-Palm Oil Eases on Weak Exports, Firm Ringgit
VEGOILS-Palm Oil Eases on Weak Exports, Firm Ringgit
15/05/2013 (Reuters) - Malaysian palm oil futures edged lower on Tuesday, dropping for a second straight session as worries about weak exports and a firm ringgit kept investors on the sidelines.
Malaysian palm oil exports fell 16.7 percent in the first 10 days of the month from the same period a month ago, weighed by slowing demand from Europe and China, said cargo surveyor Intertek Testing Services.
Another surveyor Societe Generale de Surveillance reported a steeper 18.4 percent drop.
"There are two main reasons the market is down today: a strong ringgit and the weak exports figure. Support level is at 2,280 ringgit," said a trader with a foreign commodities brokerage in Kuala Lumpur.
A firmer ringgit, which rose about 0.3 percent against the dollar on Tuesday, makes the feedstock more expensive for overseas buyers and refiners.
At market close, the benchmark July contract on then Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange was down 0.4 percent at 2,301 ringgit ($770) per tonne, after trading between 2,291 and 2,327 ringgit.
Total traded volumes stood at 26,482 lots of 25 tonnes each, lower than the average 35,000 lots.
Technicals showed palm oil looks neutral in a range of 2,295 to 2,335 ringgit per tonne, and an escape will point a future direction, said Reuters market analyst Wang Tao.
Malaysian palm oil stocks eased 11.3 percent in April, due to a combination of stagnant production growth and higher-than-expected exports and local consumption.
The market is now waiting for Malaysia's palm exports data for the May 1-15 period due Wednesday to gauge demand.
India's palm oil imports declined for a third straight month in April, Mumbai trade body the Solvent Extractors' Association said on Tuesday, as refiners in the world's biggest buyer used stocks and processed the new rapeseed harvest.
In other markets, Brent crude slipped below $103 per barrel on Tuesday, caught between hopes of a revival in global economic growth and worries over demand after bearish reports from the West's energy watchdog.
In vegetable oil markets, U.S. soyoil for July delivery fell 0.3 percent in late Asian trade. The most-active September soybean oil contract on the Dalian Commodities Exchange closed 0.1 percent lower.
Palm, soy and crude oil prices at 1002 GMT
Contract Month Last Change Low High Volume
MY PALM OIL MAY3 0 +0.00 0 0 0
MY PALM OIL JUN3 2294 -2.00 2284 2307 577
MY PALM OIL JUL3 2301 -9.00 2291 2327 12397
CHINA PALM OLEIN SEP3 6110 -22.00 6096 6176 496924
CHINA SOYOIL SEP3 7494 -10.00 7482 7572 838286
CBOT SOY OIL JUL3 49.47 -0.14 49.40 49.80 4538
NYMEX CRUDE JUN3 95.02 -0.15 94.90 95.66 19275
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=2.98 ringgit)
Malaysian palm oil exports fell 16.7 percent in the first 10 days of the month from the same period a month ago, weighed by slowing demand from Europe and China, said cargo surveyor Intertek Testing Services.
Another surveyor Societe Generale de Surveillance reported a steeper 18.4 percent drop.
"There are two main reasons the market is down today: a strong ringgit and the weak exports figure. Support level is at 2,280 ringgit," said a trader with a foreign commodities brokerage in Kuala Lumpur.
A firmer ringgit, which rose about 0.3 percent against the dollar on Tuesday, makes the feedstock more expensive for overseas buyers and refiners.
At market close, the benchmark July contract on then Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange was down 0.4 percent at 2,301 ringgit ($770) per tonne, after trading between 2,291 and 2,327 ringgit.
Total traded volumes stood at 26,482 lots of 25 tonnes each, lower than the average 35,000 lots.
Technicals showed palm oil looks neutral in a range of 2,295 to 2,335 ringgit per tonne, and an escape will point a future direction, said Reuters market analyst Wang Tao.
Malaysian palm oil stocks eased 11.3 percent in April, due to a combination of stagnant production growth and higher-than-expected exports and local consumption.
The market is now waiting for Malaysia's palm exports data for the May 1-15 period due Wednesday to gauge demand.
India's palm oil imports declined for a third straight month in April, Mumbai trade body the Solvent Extractors' Association said on Tuesday, as refiners in the world's biggest buyer used stocks and processed the new rapeseed harvest.
In other markets, Brent crude slipped below $103 per barrel on Tuesday, caught between hopes of a revival in global economic growth and worries over demand after bearish reports from the West's energy watchdog.
In vegetable oil markets, U.S. soyoil for July delivery fell 0.3 percent in late Asian trade. The most-active September soybean oil contract on the Dalian Commodities Exchange closed 0.1 percent lower.
Palm, soy and crude oil prices at 1002 GMT
Contract Month Last Change Low High Volume
MY PALM OIL MAY3 0 +0.00 0 0 0
MY PALM OIL JUN3 2294 -2.00 2284 2307 577
MY PALM OIL JUL3 2301 -9.00 2291 2327 12397
CHINA PALM OLEIN SEP3 6110 -22.00 6096 6176 496924
CHINA SOYOIL SEP3 7494 -10.00 7482 7572 838286
CBOT SOY OIL JUL3 49.47 -0.14 49.40 49.80 4538
NYMEX CRUDE JUN3 95.02 -0.15 94.90 95.66 19275
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=2.98 ringgit)