RTRS:VEGOILS-Palm oil falls on exports, economic outlook
* Palm rally overdone in previous session, exports weigh
* Investors cautious against backdrop of economic woes
* Indonesia announces tax rate for Sept 15 to 30
By Michael Taylor
JAKARTA, Sept 15 (Reuters) - Malaysian palm oil futures
eased on Thursday, as worries over falling exports and weak
comparable oils weighed on prices, with investors cautious due
to the uncertain economic picture.
Benchmark November palm oil FCPOc3 on the Bursa Malaysia
Derivatives Exchange eased 0.6 percent to trade at 3,047
Malaysian ringgit ($989) per tonne, off an earlier low
of 3,040 ringgit.
"It's a bit down because yesterday's late buying
was a bit overdone," said a Kuala Lumpur-based trader. "The
Chinese Dalian is a little soft...the market is cautious on the
economy and we have some poor exports."
Palm oil investors are concerned about a possible
build-up in stocks at a time when exports have slipped.
Earlier on Thursday, cargo surveyor Intertek Testing
Services said exports of Malaysian palm oil products for Sept.
1-15 fell 32 percent.
Traded volumes for the November contract stood at
2,836 lots of 25 tonnes each, compared with 13,520
lots on Wednesday.
On Wednesday, a late rally saw benchmark prices rise to a
near one-month high at 3,066 ringgit.
"Down a bit after being up yesterday," said a second Kuala
Lumpur-based trader. "Today the market adjusts back lower.
"The market is range-bound, and adjusting to external
factors ... there is a possibility that stocks will go up and
the USDA came out."
Benchmark prices are little changed this week, with prices
held back by a better-than-expected production outlook for the
U.S. soy crop.
Earlier this week, the U.S. Department of Agriculture
unexpectedly raised its U.S. crop production outlook by 1
percent, despite forecasts for a smaller crop due to hot, dry
weather this summer.
U.S. soyoil for October delivery was steady after
touching a two-week low on Wednesday, while the most active May
2012 soybean oil contract on China's Dalian Exchange was
little-changed.
"It's a correction after soybean oil was down last night,"
said a Jakarta-based trader.
Against this backdrop, Indonesia, the top palm oil producer,
has introduced changes to its export tax.
"The new export tax will favour planters with downstream
exposure in Indonesia, could be neutral in the near term for CPO
producers in Indonesia and is likely negative for Malaysian
planters with downstream facilities," CIMB analysts said in a
research note.
In related markets, oil fell on Thursday as rising fuel
stocks and falling demand in top consumer the United States
reinforced fears that crumbling economic growth and Europe's
debt crisis would dent energy use, while a stronger dollar
pressured prices.
Malaysian financial markets will be closed for a national
holiday on Friday.
Palm oil prices in Malaysian ringgit per tonne
CBOT soy oil in U.S. cents per pound
Dalian soy oil in Chinese yuan per tonne
Crude in U.S. dollars per barrel
($1=3.078 ringgit)