Malaysian palm oil price near five-month high

Harvesting oil palm fruit bunches is a skilled job that cannot be automated and relies heavily on manual labour. Photo: Malaysian Palm Oil Council

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian palm oil futures surged to a near-five-month high in evening trade on Monday, supported by forecasts of slower than expected output growth and technical buying despite weaker export data from cargo surveyors.

The benchmark palm oil contract for November delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange rose 1.1 percent to 2,711 ringgit ($632.60) for its strongest daily gain in more than a week. The contract earlier touched 2,720 ringgit, its highest since March 29.