The palm oil contract for April delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange rose as much as 0.82 percent to 2,568 ringgit a tonne, its highest since May 19, 2014, before settling down 0.6 percent 2,531 ringgit ($610.62) per tonne. Traded volume stood at 48,968 lots of 25 tonnes each.
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian benchmark palm oil futures rose on Monday, supported by improved demand and forecasts that stockpiles will drop on falling production ahead of a data release from the Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB).
A Reuters poll forecasts Malaysian stockpiles in April will decline as production slumps versus a year ago. Malaysian end-stocks may drop 3.5 percent to a 14-month low of 1.82 million tonnes in April, in the absence of a sharp seasonal jump in output, the poll showed. Output is forecast to rise 8 percent to 1.32 million tonnes from March, but decline 22 percent year-on-year.