MARKET DEVELOPMENT
VEGOILS-Palm Edges Lower As Weak Exports Offset Stocks Data
VEGOILS-Palm Edges Lower As Weak Exports Offset Stocks Data
11/07/2013 (Reuters) - Malaysian palm oil futures edged lower on Wednesday, weighed by weak exports for the first 10 days of the month, although bullish stocks data helped cap losses.
Figures from the Malaysian Palm Oil Board showed inventories in the world's No.2 producer dropped 9.4 percent in June to 1.65 million tonnes, the lowest since March 2011, exceeding expectations.
But prices remained weak on lower exports of Malaysian palm oil products, which fell 15.9 percent during July 1-10 to 352,375 tonnes from 419,035 a month ago, according to data from cargo surveyor Intertek Testing Services.
Traders have expected higher shipments during the first 10 days on last-minute purchases before Ramadan begins this week, as buyers stock up in preparation for typically higher consumption during the Muslim holy month.
"Surprisingly there is not much buying demand from destinations, especially from Muslim destinations," said a Singapore-based trader with a global commodities trading house.
"They haven't bought much ... probably they are satisfied with the amount they have bought already and want to consume on their stocks."
The benchmark September contract on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange lost 0.8 percent to close at 2,377 ringgit ($748) per tonne on Wednesday. Prices rose to 2,400
ringgit on Tuesday, a level last seen on June 26.
Total traded volume stood at 37,350 lots of 25 tonnes each, slightly above the average 35,000 lots.
Concerns over easing demand for the tropical oil from major buyers India and China also weighed on prices.
India's imports of refined palm oil probably fell in June from the previous month's record as weakness in the rupee currency made overseas purchases more expensive, a Reuters survey showed on Wednesday.
China, the world's second-largest palm oil buyer after India, imported 490,000 tonnes of vegetable oils that also included soyoil and rapeseed oil in June, down 31 percent from the previous month, customs data showed.
In other markets, oil prices on both sides of the Atlantic rose on Wednesday, with the U.S. benchmark climbing to a 14-month high near $105 per barrel, buoyed by a bigger-than-expected drop in inventory in top oil consumer the United States.
In vegetable oil markets, U.S. soyoil for December fell 0.2 percent in late Asian trade. The most-active January soybean oil contract on the Dalian Commodities Exchange
closed 0.1 percent higher.
Palm, soy and crude oil prices at 1000 GMT
Contract Month Last Change Low High Volume
MY PALM OIL JUL3 2415 +19.00 2415 2415 1
MY PALM OIL AUG3 2382 -23.00 2375 2403 3569
MY PALM OIL SEP3 2377 -20.00 2370 2394 17580
CHINA PALMOLEIN JAN4 5882 +10.00 5824 5926 405236
CHINA SOYOIL JAN4 7286 +10.00 7232 7336 708842
CBOT SOY OIL DEC3 45.88 -0.09 45.76 46.16 4259
NYMEX CRUDE AUG3 104.82 +1.29 104.21 104.87 29005
Palm oil prices in Malaysian ringgit per tonne
CBOT soy oil in U.S. cents per pound
Dalian soy oil and RBD palmolein in Chinese yuan per tonne
Crude in U.S. dollars per barrel
($1=3.179 ringgit)
Figures from the Malaysian Palm Oil Board showed inventories in the world's No.2 producer dropped 9.4 percent in June to 1.65 million tonnes, the lowest since March 2011, exceeding expectations.
But prices remained weak on lower exports of Malaysian palm oil products, which fell 15.9 percent during July 1-10 to 352,375 tonnes from 419,035 a month ago, according to data from cargo surveyor Intertek Testing Services.
Traders have expected higher shipments during the first 10 days on last-minute purchases before Ramadan begins this week, as buyers stock up in preparation for typically higher consumption during the Muslim holy month.
"Surprisingly there is not much buying demand from destinations, especially from Muslim destinations," said a Singapore-based trader with a global commodities trading house.
"They haven't bought much ... probably they are satisfied with the amount they have bought already and want to consume on their stocks."
The benchmark September contract on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange lost 0.8 percent to close at 2,377 ringgit ($748) per tonne on Wednesday. Prices rose to 2,400
ringgit on Tuesday, a level last seen on June 26.
Total traded volume stood at 37,350 lots of 25 tonnes each, slightly above the average 35,000 lots.
Concerns over easing demand for the tropical oil from major buyers India and China also weighed on prices.
India's imports of refined palm oil probably fell in June from the previous month's record as weakness in the rupee currency made overseas purchases more expensive, a Reuters survey showed on Wednesday.
China, the world's second-largest palm oil buyer after India, imported 490,000 tonnes of vegetable oils that also included soyoil and rapeseed oil in June, down 31 percent from the previous month, customs data showed.
In other markets, oil prices on both sides of the Atlantic rose on Wednesday, with the U.S. benchmark climbing to a 14-month high near $105 per barrel, buoyed by a bigger-than-expected drop in inventory in top oil consumer the United States.
In vegetable oil markets, U.S. soyoil for December fell 0.2 percent in late Asian trade. The most-active January soybean oil contract on the Dalian Commodities Exchange
closed 0.1 percent higher.
Palm, soy and crude oil prices at 1000 GMT
Contract Month Last Change Low High Volume
MY PALM OIL JUL3 2415 +19.00 2415 2415 1
MY PALM OIL AUG3 2382 -23.00 2375 2403 3569
MY PALM OIL SEP3 2377 -20.00 2370 2394 17580
CHINA PALMOLEIN JAN4 5882 +10.00 5824 5926 405236
CHINA SOYOIL JAN4 7286 +10.00 7232 7336 708842
CBOT SOY OIL DEC3 45.88 -0.09 45.76 46.16 4259
NYMEX CRUDE AUG3 104.82 +1.29 104.21 104.87 29005
Palm oil prices in Malaysian ringgit per tonne
CBOT soy oil in U.S. cents per pound
Dalian soy oil and RBD palmolein in Chinese yuan per tonne
Crude in U.S. dollars per barrel
($1=3.179 ringgit)