Palm oil advanced for a third day to the highest level in almost two weeks on speculation that rising exports from Malaysia may help pare stockpiles in the world’s largest producer after Indonesia.
The contract for July delivery climbed as much as 1.6 per cent to RM2,326 a metric tonne on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives, the highest price for the most-active futures since April 12, before trading at RM2,315 at 12.23pm in Kuala Lumpur. The gain trimmed losses for the most-active contract to five per cent this year.
Exports from Malaysia increased 5.3 per cent to 1.12 million tonnes in the first 25 days of this month from the same period in March, surveyor Intertek said today. Reserves dropped to a seven-month low of 2.17 million tonnes last month as exports advanced, according to Malaysian Palm Oil Board data. Output,
which gained 2.2 per cent last month, typically picks up in the second quarter.
“If production is not growing that fast, and exports improve, there’s a good chance that stocks may come down,” said Ivy Ng, an analyst at CIMB Investment Bank Bhd. “Malaysian production on a month-on-month basis may not grow that much.”
Soybean oil for July delivery rose 0.4 per cent to 49.10 cents a pound on the Chicago Board of Trade, while soybeans gained 0.6 per cent to US$13.53 a bushel.
Refined palm oil for September delivery advanced 1.5 per cent to 6,022 yuan (US$976) a tonne on the Dalian Commodity Exchange, after closing at the lowest price since October 2009 yesterday. Soybean oil climbed 0.7 per cent to 7,366 yuan a tonne, rebounding from the lowest close since February 2010 yesterday.– Bloomberg
Source : Business Times
