KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 21 (Bernama) -- Malaysian palm oil prices are expectedto stay at the RM1,200 per tonne level, Malaysian Palm Oil PromotionCouncil (MPOPC) director of marketing and promotion, Dr Ahmad Ibrahim saidhere Tuesday.

"I think it will stay around RM1,200 but if the US crop (soya bean) facesproblems (like the dry weather), palm oil prices may go up further," hesaid.

Another bullish factor is the festival season in India, the major importerof Malaysian palm oil, he told Bernama at the 2001 International Palm OilCongress (2001 POPIC) here today

And if China joins the World Trade Organisation (WTO) by the end of theyear, "it will be another good market to look at".

Asked about the palm oil price yesterday, which dropped to RM1,115, hesaid: "The price increase in Malaysia's palm oil was too fast and now itis being corrected."

Asked on whether planters should sell when the price is high, he said thatthe price was not just influenced by supply and demand alone.

"Stock position is another issue. We want our stock to be below onemillion tonne," he said.

He said that the world weather, like the El nino, would also be anotherconcern for prices.

"If the El nino is there, than the price will firm again," he said.

Ahmad also said that Malaysia and Indonesia, which are expecting lowerproduction than projected, are revising production downstream.

"We don't want to be too greedy, we can export the oil while the price isgood, we will never know," he said.

-- BERNAMA