KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 12 (Bernama) -- Total palm oil stocks in the countrydropped 6.27 percent to 1.213 million tonnes in December last year from1.294 million tonnes in November, the Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB),said.

Crude palm oil stocks declined 1.94 percent to 734,364 tonnes from 748,895tonnes while that of palm kernel fell marginally by 0.18 percent to119,985 tonnes from 120,205 tonnes, the board said when releasingperformance of the Malaysian palm oil industry for December, 2001, hereSaturday.

However, stocks of crude palm kernel oil rose 0.66 percent 264,631 tonnesfrom 262,884 tonnes, stocks of processed palm kernel oil fell 0.48 percentto 90,028 tonnes and that of palm kernel cake dropped 11.25 percent to168,706 tonnes.

Crude palm oil (CPO) output in Malaysia in December last year declined10.9 percent to 948,704 tonnes from 1.064 million tonnes in November, MPOBsaid.

CPO production in Peninsular Malaysia dropped 12.3 percent to 544,336tonnes from 625,205 tonnes.

Palm kernel production fell 9.36 percent to 269,044 tonnes from 296,818tonnes, crude palm kernel output dropped 8.66 percent to 121,736 tonnesfrom 133,278 tonnes and that of palm kernel cake declined 7.84 percent to141,900 tonnes from 154,073 tonnes.

Exports of palm oil fell 3.91 percent to 949,630 tonnes from 988,223tonnes, exportds of palm kernel oil rose 6.11 percent to 54,623 tonnesfrom 51,480 tonnes while that of palm kernel cake declined 37 percent to123,522 tonnes from 196,072 tonnes. -- BERNAMA