RTRS:VEGOILS-Palm hits 6-week low on stocks, Euro woes
* Euro zone uncertainty weighs; wet weather eyed
* MPOB stock data neutral to negative -trader
(Recasts, adds comment/detail)
By Michael Taylor
JAKARTA, Dec 13 (Reuters) - Palm futures closed hardly
changed on Tuesday after earlier falling to near six-week lows
on persistent worries over the euro zone debt crisis and higher
than expected inventory data.
Benchmark February palm oil futures on
the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange closed 0.1 percent
higher at 3,002 Malaysian ringgit ($950) per tonne.
Traded volumes for the February palm contract were at 9,957
lots of 25 tonnes each, compared with 10,079 lots on Monday.
"The market is okay because yesterday it was a bit
overdone," said a Kuala Lumpur-based trader.
In a volatile session, prices earlier rose as high as 3,023
ringgit, after briefly touching a near six-week low at 2,980
ringgit.
European stocks and the euro steadied after sharp sell-offs
on disappointment about last week's EU summit but any gains
could be short lived due to lingering concerns over credit
rating downgrades and the health of the banking sector.
U.S. soybeans rose for a second straight day as
concerns over dry weather in South America supported the market.
China's most active May 2012 soybean oil contract <0#DBY:>
rose slightly after hitting a near two-week low on Monday.
Palm prices have been capped by the latest inventory data
from major producer Malaysia, which showed November palm oil
stocks fell 1.5 percent to 2,068,754 tonnes in October.
An earlier Reuters survey had forecast stock levels at 1.96
million tonnes for October.
"The figures were less than exciting," said a
second Kuala Lumpur-based trader. "The market is taking its lead
from external markets ... the underlying sentiment remains weak
and cautious."
Exports of Malaysian palm oil products for Dec 1-10 fell 4.6
percent to 436,633 tonnes cargo surveyor Societe Generale de
Surveillance added.
Malaysia is the world's second largest palm oil producer
after Indonesia.
The monsoon season in top Southeast Asian producing
countries was also helping to support prices, investors said.
On Monday, the state weather agency of top palm producer
Indonesia warned of floods in top producing regions Kalimantan
and Sumatra.
Excessive rains can affect oil yield quality and force palm
oil firms to sell the edible oil at a discount. So far, however,
planters have not reported major logistical disruptions.
"Going forward we are seeing limited upside potential," said
a third trader. "The trend is still southbound with intermittent
profit taking. Traders are more concerned about demand."
In related markets, Brent crude inched up towards $108 on
Tuesday as a sell-off in the previous session provided investors
with some buying opportunity in the broader markets.
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
