JAKARTA: Malaysian palm oil futures reversed earlier gains, tracking rival oils at Dalian and booked a third straight weekly loss on Friday, their lowest decline in 28 weeks.
The benchmark palm oil contract for July delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange lost 36 ringgit, or 0.9%, to 3,975 ringgit ($901.36) a metric ton at the close.
The futures lost 5.63% this week.
“The futures seem to be consolidating and trading in the range of 4000 to 4080 ringgit while waiting for new lead in the market,” a Kuala Lumpur-based trader said.
Dalian’s most-active soyoil contract was down 0.05%, while its palm oil contract declined 0.12%. Soyoil prices on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) rose 0.67%.
Palm oil tracks price movements of rival edible oils as it competes for a share of the global vegetable oils market.
Malaysia maintained its May export tax for crude palm oil at 10% and lowered its reference price, a circular on the Malaysian Palm Oil Board website showed on Tuesday.
Exports of Malaysian palm oil products for April 1-15 are estimated to have risen between 13.6% and 17% from a month ago, said cargo surveyor Intertek Testing Services and independent inspection company AmSpec Agri Malaysia.
The Malaysian ringgit, the contract currency of trade, largely traded flat against the U.S. dollar. A weaker ringgit makes the contract more attractive for foreign currency holders.
