PETALING JAYA: Malaysia’s palm oil exports for the year is expected to be better than last year’s RM61.36 billion as the commodity’s prices have improved and exporters are shipping out more volumes of oil.
For the first nine months, Malaysia has shipped out RM47.62 billion worth of palm oil products.
Palm oil futures prices have been averaging at around RM2,430 a tonne, slightly higher than last year’s RM2,380 a tonne.
“This year, we should do slightly better because palm oil prices are averaging at a higher level and we’re producing more oil. I’m maintaining this year’s crude palm oil output at 19.5 million tonnes, which is slightly higher than last year’s 19.22 million tonnes,” said Malaysian Palm Oil Board economist Ramli Abdullah.
Yesterday, the third-month benchmark for crude palm oil contract on Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange fell RM56 to close at RM2,252 a tonne.
He said palm oil prices are likely to trade range-bound and unlikely to dip below RM2,000 a tonne for the rest of the year as many oil-consuming countries have started to restock on this kitchen staple.
Ramli was speaking at a seminar organised by the Palm Oil Refiners Association of Malaysia, here, last week. Also present was INTL FCStone senior risk manager Ryan Long.
He urged the mid-sized plantation companies, who cannot afford their own team of traders, to subscribe to INTL FCStone’s offer of fundamental and technical market intelligence, forecasting, historical databases, news and econometric analysis of edible oils.
“We can help those mid-sized oil palm companies to manage their business risks. We can help hedge their position for a fee. These businesses are exposed to the volatility of palm oil prices. Risk cannot be eliminated, but we are here to help manage it,” he said.
Source : New Straits Times
