08/09/2017 (The News International) - KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian palm oil futures fell in morning trade on Thursday, as a further strengthening of the ringgit dampened trading sentiment.

The benchmark palm oil contract for November delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange dropped 0.6 percent to 2,727 ringgit ($646.98) at the midday break. Traded volumes were thin, at 16,135 lots of 25 tonnes each at noon.

"The market is down mainly because of the ringgit," said a Kuala Lumpur-based futures trader, adding that traders are keeping to the sidelines ahead of industry data.

The ringgit has been strengthening for the past three days, rising 0.54 percent on Thursday, its biggest gain since April 25. A more expensive ringgit makes palm oil less attractive to buyers of the tropical oil holding foreign currencies. —Reuters