MARKET DEVELOPMENT
Palm oil up on soy oil, exports
Palm oil up on soy oil, exports
25/5/07 (The News) - KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian crude palm futures closed 2.2 percent higher on Friday, hitting a fresh near-nine-year high on a spike in rival soy oil and firm exports.
The benchmark August contract was up 53 ringgit, or2.2 percent, at 2,498 ringgit ($737) a tonne. It touched a session high of 2,503 ringgit, a level not seen since August1998.
“The rise in U.S. soy oil prices overnight and in electronic trading has impacted our palm oil market in a very significant way,” said one dealer. “Export numbers have been supportive throughout.”
The palm oil market has gained more than 25 percent this year after surging 40 percent in 2006 on the back of demand from the bio diesel and food sectors.
Other traded months rose between 30 and 66 ringgit, with overall trade at 12,997 lots of 25 tonnes each.
Traders said they expected nearby contract months to remain firm due to tight supplies at home and healthy demand from top importers China and India.
On Thursday, soy oil futures on the Chicago Board of Trade made contract highs across the board as the spot price approached a 23-year high.
In electronic trading during Asian hours, July soy oil gained nearly 1 percent or 0.33 cent to 35.91 cents a lb at 1047GMT.
Malaysian palm oil usually follows the U.S. soy oil market because both commodities are used in products ranging from food and cosmetics to bio diesel.
Malaysian palm oil stocks are forecast to decline 9.4 percent in May to 1.07 million tonnes, hitting a new three-year low, a Reuters poll showed on Thursday.
Exports of Malaysian palm oil products for May 1-25 fell 1.1 percent to 918,738 tonnes from 928,874 tonnes shipped between April 1-25, cargo surveyor Intertek Testing Services said.
Another cargo surveyor Societe Generale de Surveillence said exports during the period rose 5 percent to 952,648 tonnes from907,330 tonnes shipped between April 1 and 25.
The benchmark August contract was up 53 ringgit, or2.2 percent, at 2,498 ringgit ($737) a tonne. It touched a session high of 2,503 ringgit, a level not seen since August1998.
“The rise in U.S. soy oil prices overnight and in electronic trading has impacted our palm oil market in a very significant way,” said one dealer. “Export numbers have been supportive throughout.”
The palm oil market has gained more than 25 percent this year after surging 40 percent in 2006 on the back of demand from the bio diesel and food sectors.
Other traded months rose between 30 and 66 ringgit, with overall trade at 12,997 lots of 25 tonnes each.
Traders said they expected nearby contract months to remain firm due to tight supplies at home and healthy demand from top importers China and India.
On Thursday, soy oil futures on the Chicago Board of Trade made contract highs across the board as the spot price approached a 23-year high.
In electronic trading during Asian hours, July soy oil gained nearly 1 percent or 0.33 cent to 35.91 cents a lb at 1047GMT.
Malaysian palm oil usually follows the U.S. soy oil market because both commodities are used in products ranging from food and cosmetics to bio diesel.
Malaysian palm oil stocks are forecast to decline 9.4 percent in May to 1.07 million tonnes, hitting a new three-year low, a Reuters poll showed on Thursday.
Exports of Malaysian palm oil products for May 1-25 fell 1.1 percent to 918,738 tonnes from 928,874 tonnes shipped between April 1-25, cargo surveyor Intertek Testing Services said.
Another cargo surveyor Societe Generale de Surveillence said exports during the period rose 5 percent to 952,648 tonnes from907,330 tonnes shipped between April 1 and 25.