Malaysian palm oil price edges higher as market rebounds
The Star Online (20/11/2018) - KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian palm oil futures rose more than 1.6 percent on Monday as market stabilised after being oversold last week.
The benchmark palm oil contract for February delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange rose 1.62 percent to 2,004 ringgit ($478.51) per tonne at the midday break.
Trading volumes stood at 21,054 lots of 25 tonnes each.
Traders said the market was stabilising after being oversold last week, although inventory and production concerns remain.
"Market is stabilising and inching higher after being oversold," a Kuala Lumpur-based trader said.
The futures contract slid in eight out of the last 10 sessions, and hit its lowest level since August 2015 last week. On Friday, palm opened 4.1 percent higher from Thursday only to fall 4.3 percent in the same session.
Another trader said despite the rebound palm could still fall as underlying sentiment is weak.
Stockpiles at the end of October increased 7.6 percent from the previous month to 2.72 million tonnes, while production rose 6 percent to 1.96 million tonnes, official data from the Malaysian Palm Oil Board showed last week.
Inventories in top producers Indonesia and Malaysia were expected to rise for the next two months, with demand unlikely to jump from key buyers as palm oil solidifies in winter months.
In other related edible oils, the Chicago December soybean oil contract was down 0.15 percent.
On the Dalian Commodity Exchange, the January soybean oil contract on the dipped 0.22 percent while the January palm oil contract fell 0.98 percent. - Reuters