19/02/2016 (Bernama) - Crude palm oil (CPO) futures contract on Bursa Malaysia Derivatives reversed yesterday's gains to close lower today as the ringgit edged up against the dollar.

A dealer said a stronger ringgit would make the edible oil more expensive for buyers.

Philip Futures Sdn Bhd derivative product specialist David Ng said the downtrend in the tropical market was also weighed down by the expectation of weaker export data for end-February.

The country's shipments for the first half of February fell between 14 and 16 per cent compared with the same period a month ago, hit by weak demand from major importers, namely China and India.

"We locate support at RM2,500 and immediate resistance at RM2,620," he told Bernama.

At the close, spot month March 2016 fell RM23 to RM2,522, April 2016 decreased RM11 to RM2,585, May 2016 shed RM13 to RM2,600 and June 2016 was RM13 lower at RM2,586.

Turnover reduced to 42,909 lots from 49,612 lots on Wednesday, while open interest eased to 239,079 contracts from 243,419 contracts previously.

On the physical market, March South was unchanged at RM2,530 a tonne.