KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian palm oil futures were little changed on Monday, as Malaysian Palm Oil Board’s (MPOB) data provided some support to the market, though gains were capped by weaker November export figures and a stronger ringgit.
The benchmark palm oil contract for January delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange gained 2 ringgit, or 0.05%, to 4,111 ringgit ($973.25) a metric ton at the close. The contract fell 0.96% in the previous session.
The MPOB’s demand and supply data provided a mildly bullish tone, a Kuala Lumpur-based trader said.
However, upside in the market remained limited as weaker November 1-10 export figures and a stronger ringgit weighed on sentiment, the trader added.
Cargo surveyors estimated that exports of Malaysian palm oil products for November 1-10 fell between 9.5% and 12.3% compared to the same period a month earlier.
Malaysia’s palm oil stocks rose for an eighth consecutive month to a 6-1/2-year high by the end of October, as the biggest output in a decade outweighed a jump in exports, data from MPOB showed.
Dalian’s most-active soyoil contract rose 0.71%, while its palm oil contract gained 0.12%. Soyoil prices on the Chicago Board of Trade were up 0.62%.
Palm oil tracks price movements of rival edible oils, as it competes for a share of the global vegetable oils market.
Oil prices rose on optimism that the U.S. government shutdown could end soon and lift demand in the world’s top oil consumer, offsetting concerns about rising supplies globally.
Stronger crude oil futures make palm a more attractive option for biodiesel feedstock.
The ringgit palm’s currency of trade, strengthened 0.38% against the dollar, making the commodity slightly more expensive for buyers holding foreign currencies.
China will restore soybean import licences for three U.S. firms and lift its suspension on U.S. log imports starting November 10, its customs authority said, in another sign of easing trade tensions between the two nations.
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