15.12.2020 (www.todayonline.com) - KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 15 - Malaysian palm oil futures eased on Tuesday as rival soybean oil and crude declined, although expectations of better exports during the first half of December put a floor under prices.

The benchmark palm oil contract for February delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange slid 12 ringgit, or 0.35%, to 3,444 ringgit ($848.07) a tonne in early trade.

Palm closed at its highest since May 2012 in the previous session, buoyed by hopes of a rise in Malaysia's Dec. 1-15 exports of the vegetable oil.

Cargo surveyors are set to release the export data later in the day.

FUNDAMENTALS

* Palm imports into the European Union and Britain in the 2020/21 season that started in July totalled 2.74 million tonnes, up 7% compared with the same period last year, official EU data showed on Monday.

* Dalian's most-active soyoil contract rose 0.2%, while its palm oil contract gained 0.8%. Soyoil prices on the Chicago Board of Trade were down 0.2%.

* Palm oil is affected by price movements in related oils as they compete for a share in the global vegetable oils market.

* Oil prices dipped in early trade on demand worries due to tighter lockdowns in Europe, making palm a less attractive option for biodiesel feedstock.

MARKET NEWS

* Asian stocks came under pressure on Tuesday following a mixed Wall Street session, as concerns about increasing COVID-19 deaths, infections and lockdowns overshadowed optimism about the start of coronavirus vaccinations.

DATA/EVENTS

0630 India WPI Inflation YY Nov REUTERS