JAKARTA: Malaysian palm oil futures fell on Wednesday, dragged down by weakness in rival vegetable oils while a stronger ringgit added pressure to the contract.
The benchmark palm oil contract for February delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange lost 38 ringgit, or 0.75%, to 5,037 ringgit ($1,148.17) a metric ton at closing.
The contract is pulled down by the easing of soyoil prices in the Dalian Commodity Exchange and the Chicago Board of Trade, a Kuala Lumpur-based trader said.
Dalian’s palm oil contract climbed 0.72%, while its most-active soyoil contract slipped 0.25%. Soyoil was down 1.23% at the Chicago Board of Trade.
Malaysian ringgit, the contract’s currency of trade, strengthened 0.38% against the U.S. dollar, weighing down palm oil futures.
A stronger ringgit makes palm oil less attractive for foreign currency holders.
India’s edible oil imports in November jumped to their highest levels in four months as refiners raised purchases of palm oil, soyoil and sunflower oil to replenish inventories after robust demand during the festival season, five dealers said.
Malaysian palm oil exports in November are seen falling between 9.3% and 10.4%, according to cargo surveyor Intertek Testing Services and independent inspection company AmSpec Agri Malaysia.
Indonesia raised its crude palm oil (CPO) reference price for December to $1,071.67 a metric ton from $961.97 in November, placing the export tax higher at $178 per ton.
