* Indonesia's Dec CPO output seen at 2.457 mln T
* Indonesia CPO exports seen at 2.675 mln T for Dec

19/01/2016 (Reuters) - Indonesia's crude palm oil (CPO) output slipped to a nine-month low in December, a Reuters survey showed, as Southeast Asia's monsoon season curtailed operations in the world's two biggest producers of the edible oil.

Indonesia's CPO output in December was 2.457 million tonnes, down 12 percent from 2.8 million tonnes in November and the lowest since March, according to the median estimate in a survey of three industry officials and one plantation company.

Falling output and rising exports may support benchmark palm prices, which climbed nearly 10 percent in 2015 and are currently trading near 2,480 ringgit ($564) a tonne.
  
"Typically, December production will come off because it is a low production month," said plantations analyst Ivy Ng at CIMB Research. "It is quite similar to what Malaysia has experienced."

Last week, data from rival palm grower Malaysia showed that CPO output there fell by 15 percent in December from the previous month.

Southeast Asia's peak palm oil output usually runs over August to September, with production in the world's top producer Indonesia and No.2 producer Malaysia typically easing as the region heads into its wet season in November.

The Reuters survey pegged Indonesia's CPO exports for December at 2.675 million tonnes, up 28 percent from November and highest since at least August 2014, when the survey began.

Chinese buying ahead of the upcoming Lunar New Year holiday may have boosted palm buying in December, said Ng, adding that many Indonesian sellers have been aggressive in selling palm products at a discount to Malaysia in recent weeks.

According to the survey, Indonesian palm stocks were at 2.425 million tonnes in December, a level not seen since February and down from 2.950 million tonnes in November.

Indonesia's domestic consumption of the tropical oil was estimated in a range between 550,000 tonnes and 767,000 tonnes.

The latest monthly data published by the Indonesian Palm Oil Association (GAPKI) showed November exports at 2.39 million tonnes. GAPKI data for December is yet to be released.
 
The Reuters survey for December comprises contributions from GAPKI, the Indonesian Palm Oil Board, the Indonesian Vegetable Oil Industry Association and Sinar Mas Agro Resources & Technology, one of the largest listed palm oil companies.
   
Below is a table of median Reuters CPO survey results and GAPKI palm and palm kernel oil export data for 2014/15 (in million tonnes).
               
 Month      Output   Exports   Inventories   GAPKI export data
 
 December   2.457    2.675       2.425          ---   
 November   2.800    2.093       2.950          2.39
 October    3.010    2.213       3.025          2.61
 September  3.100    2.235       3.050          2.34
 August     3.198    1.885       3.392          2.10      
 July       2.856    1.920       3.200          2.09
 June       2.800    2.400       3.046          2.27
 May        2.774    2.150       2.540          2.22
 April      2.662    2.046       2.602          2.25  
 March      2.397    1.800       2.667          2.03
 February   2.049    1.750       2.425          1.79
 January    2.056    1.658       2.413          1.81
 ----------------------------------------------------
 December   2.165    1.837       2.325          1.97
 November   2.306    2.100       2.225          2.26
 October    2.385    1.820       2.378          2.47
 September  2.675    1.750       2.500          1.70
 August     2.750    1.720       2.575          1.72

    ($1 = 4.3980 ringgit)