JAKARTA: Malaysian palm oil futures ended up after earlier hitting a new three-month low on Thursday, tracking other vegetable oils, as traders waited for fresh cues and monthly export data due soon.
By the close, benchmark palm oil for October on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange ended 0.6 percent higher at 2,123 ringgit ($556) a tonne.
Earlier, prices hit a low at 2,099 ringgit, its lowest level since April 30. Palm prices have slipped 5 percent in July.
"We are waiting for fresh leads," said a trader with a foreign commodities brokerage in Kuala Lumpur. "We are waiting for tomorrow's monthly export figure to see which direction it goes."
Total traded volume on Thursday stood at 36,393 lots of 25 tonnes each, slightly above the roughly 35,000 lots usually traded daily.
Palm oil is expected to fall to 2,088 ringgit per tonne, as it has broken a support at 2,115 ringgit, Reuters market analyst Wang Tao said.
In other vegetable oils, the U.S. August soyoil contract rose 0.5 percent, while the most active soybean oil contract on the Dalian
Commodity Exchange was 0.3 percent lower.
A recent sell-off in Chinese stock markets and its impact on demand is weighing on palm sentiment, said a second trader, referring to one of the world's top importers of the tropical oil.
"Bearish forces are lining up against palm oil, including slowing demand from China and India," the trader added.
Crude oil prices steadied after a larger-than-expected draw in U.S. crude and gasoline stocks was balanced by a stronger dollar, making fuel more expensive for holders of other currencies.
On the upside, the Malaysian ringgit traded near 17-year lows and is the currency that benchmark palm is priced in, offering some support to palm oil.
Traders are also keeping an eye on weather conditions at Asian palm plantations for any potential upside from an El Nino dry weather pattern.
Palm, soy and crude oil prices at 1027 GMT
Contract Month Last Change Low High Volume
MY PALM OIL AUG5 2124 +5.00 2096 2124 36
MY PALM OIL SEP5 2124 +9.00 2102 2126 4540
MY PALM OIL OCT5 2123 +12.00 2099 2125 21727
CHINA PALM OLEIN JAN6 4748 -30.00 4734 4784 508902
CHINA SOYOIL JAN6 5488 -18.00 5468 5528 441224
CBOT SOY OIL DEC5 30.78 -2.20 30.51 30.82 3766
INDIA PALM OIL JUL5 418.90 -2.20 417.50 420.40 263
INDIA SOYOIL AUG5 573.50 +3.00 568.20 573.80 41340
NYMEX CRUDE SEP5 49.21 +0.42 48.65 49.26 25826
Palm oil prices in Malaysian ringgit per tonne
CBOT soy oil in U.S. cents per pound
Dalian soy oil and RBD palm olein in Chinese yuan per tonne
India soy oil in Indian rupee per 10 kg
Crude in U.S. dollars per barrel
($1 = 3.8150 ringgit)
($1 = 64.0100 Indian rupees)
($1 = 6.2096 Chinese yuan renminbi)
- Reuters
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