25/1/2006 (Busienss Times)  -  THE imposition of trans-fatty acid labelling by the US from this month will not have any negative impact on the price of crude palm oil (CPO), K&N Kenanga Bhd vice-president and head of research Seow Choong Liang said.

"Palm oil is not fatty acid, thus we will not expect to see any repercussion on the commodity from the US consumers.

"The policy is, however, expected to push up the price of CPO," he said at the Eighth Malaysia Strategic Outlook Conference in Kuala Lumpur yesterday.

Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak officiated at the conference.

Seow said CPO price should remain firm, despite the aggressive selling in Indonesia from the recent depreciation of the rupiah.

He said the price will be partly supported by rising demand for biodiesel from European Union countries.

"Malaysia too will have a biofuel policy. China's move to abolish palm oil import quota from January this year also helps," he said.

Seow said he is bullish on Malaysia's overall economic outlook for this year, due to the recovery of the semiconductor industry.