11/01/2018 (Palm oil futures rebound) - KUALA LUMPUR: Palm oil futures rose nearly 1 per cent on Wednesday, rebounding from a sharp drop in the previous session, as strong export data from a cargo surveyor supported market gains. Palm oil was up earlier on a weaker ringgit and gains in crude oil prices.

Weakness in the ringgit, palm’s currency of trade, typically lends support to the vegetable oil by making it cheaper for holders of foreign currencies.

The benchmark palm oil contract for March delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange was up 0.96pc at 2,622 ringgit ($655.17) a tonne at the close of trade, a third session of gains in four.

It had declined 1.1pc on Tuesday, its sharpest fall in nearly three weeks. Trading volumes stood at 55,050 lots of 25 tonnes each on Wednesday evening.

In other related edible oils, the March soybean oil contract on the Chicago Board of Trade gained 0.2pc, while May soybean oil on the Dalian Commodity Exchange was up 0.4pc.

The Dalian January palm oil contract declined 0.3pc.

Published in Dawn, January 11th, 2018