RTRS:VEGOILS-Palm oil flat as weather fears offset Europe woes
* M'sia Jan 1-10 palm oil exports down 16.2 pct - ITS
* M'sia Dec stocks down 1.5 pct from Nov - MPOB
* M'sia Jan 1-10 palm oil exports down 19.2 pct - SGS
(Updates prices, adds details)
By Chew Yee Kiat
SINGAPORE, Jan 10 (Reuters) - Malaysian crude palm oil
futures were unchanged on Tuesday as concerns that erratic
weather in South America and Southeast Asia could hurt oilseed
production offset uncertainty over the euro zone debt crisis.
Prospects of hot and dry weather in Argentina lowering soy
yields and wet weather in Malaysia disrupting palm oil
production helped lift palm oil futures.
But gains were erased by fears that the euro zone debt
crisis could spill over into other markets.
"The market is very quiet, it's locked in a tight range. It
has been tracking external markets like CBOT and Dalian," said a
trader with a foreign commodities brokerage in Kuala Lumpur.
"It will be trading in the 3,200-3,250 ringgit range unless
there is any new fundamental factor," the trader added.
Benchmark March palm oil futures on the Bursa
Malaysia Derivatives Exchange closed unchanged at 3,215 ringgit
($1,000) per tonne.
Traded volumes stood at 18,847 lots of 25 tonnes each,
compared to the usual 25,000 lots.
Palm oil is neutral in a range of 3,176-3,244 ringgit per
tonne, with a higher chance to eventually drop below 3,176
ringgit according to technical charts, said Reuters market
analyst Wang Tao.
Industry regulator Malaysian Palm Oil Board said Malaysia's
December palm oil stocks fell 1.5 percent from a month ago,
better than expectations of a 5.7 percent decline in a Reuters
survey. Stock levels stayed above 2 million tonnes,
Wet weather in No.2 palm oil producer Malaysia has been a
constant worry for traders as floods may disrupt production and
add pressure to tightening stocks.
The Malaysian Meteorological Department issued heavy rain
warnings for Sarawak, a key producing state that accounts for
almost 15 percent of national palm oil output.
The market is also keeping an eye on export trends for signs
of slowing demand for the tropical oil. Malaysian palm oil
exports in Jan. 1-10 fell 16 percent compared to a month ago,
according to cargo surveyor Intertek Testing Services, in line
with industry's expectations.
Another cargo surveyor Societe Generale de Surveillance
reported a steeper 19 percent decline for the same period.
In other oil markets, Brent crude edged up above $113 on
Tuesday, spurred by tensions over Iran's nuclear programme and
unrest in Nigeria, but persistent worries about the strength of
Europe's economies capped gains.
U.S. soyoil for March delivery rose 0.3 percent,
extending from an earlier weather-driven rally. The most active
September 2012 soyoil contract on China's Dalian
commodity exchange also jumped 0.6 percent.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture will issue January world
crop reports on Thursday which traders expect to show downgrades
of South American crop forecasts.
"Dalian is tracking CBOT yesterday, which rose quite a bit
on Argentine dry weather," said Zhang Ru Ming, research manager
with Liangyun Futures in Dalian.
"We will be looking at the USDA reports on Thursday but they
will not move the market too much as it has already priced in
expectations on the reports," he added.
Palm, soy and crude oil prices at 1003 GMT
Contract Month Last Change Low High Volume
MY PALM OIL JAN2 3220 +10.00 3210 3230 14
MY PALM OIL FEB2 3219 -1.00 3219 3245 1701
MY PALM OIL MAR2 3215 +0.00 3208 3240 9916
CHINA PALM OLEIN SEP2 8162 +34.00 8162 8220 82518
CHINA SOYOIL SEP2 9106 +58.00 9100 9154 228784
CBOT SOY OIL MAR2 52.49 +0.16 52.10 52.52 7023
NYMEX CRUDE FEB2 102.71 +1.40 101.30 102.87 19252
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
Crude in U.S. dollars per barrel
