RTRS:VEGOILS-Palm oil off 1-mth high, U.S. weather in focus
* Fears remain over drought damaging soybean crop prospects
* Prices touch fresh high at 3,100 ringgit, not seen since
July 17
* Palm oil to soar to 3,183 ringgit -technicals
(Updates prices)
By Chew Yee Kiat
KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 23 (Reuters) - Malaysian crude palm oil
futures edged off a one-month high on Thursday, as traders
turned cautious over demand prospects, with the worst drought in
the U.S. Midwest in 56 years pushing oilseed prices higher.
Palm oil futures have been riding on the back of
weather-fuelled gains in the soybean oil market after a long
weekend holiday and strong export demand, but traders said the
price rally might not be sustainable.
"The market looks a little toppish. The current high prices
will certainly hurt demand," said a trader with a domestic
commodities brokerage in Malaysia.
"We are also entering the peak palm oil production months of
September and October, which could cap any major rallies."
The benchmark November 2012 contract on the Bursa
Malaysia Derivatives Exchange lost 0.6 percent to close at 3,061
ringgit ($990) per tonne. Prices had earlier hit a high of 3,100
ringgit, a level last seen on July 17.
Total traded volumes soared to 43,207 lots of 25 tonnes each
after the midday break, compared to the usual 25,000 lots.
Technicals appear to be supportive. Palm oil will rise to
3,183 ringgit per tonne as it has broken above a resistance at
3,044 ringgit, said Reuters market analyst Wang Tao.
Demand for the edible oil has been resilient, with
Malaysia's palm oil exports rising 6 percent for the Aug 1-20
period from a month ago on higher shipments to China and India,
cargo surveyor Intertek Testing Services said on Wednesday.
Another cargo surveyor, Societe Generale de Surveillance
will release Aug 1-20 data, together with Aug 1-25 data, on
Monday.
The worst drought in the United States in more than half a
century that damaged soybean crop prospects remained in focus as
a smaller supply of soybean oil could shift more demand to the
cheaper palm oil.
Planters are also concerned by weather woes closer to
Southeast Asia, where a possible return of El Nino by the end of
the year could hurt oil palm yields for major producers
Indonesia and Malaysia.
Oil prices rose on Thursday to top $116 a barrel on renewed
hopes for a third round of monetary stimulus by the U.S. Federal
Reserve despite weak economic data from China.
In other vegetable oil markets, the most active U.S. soyoil
contract for December delivery lost 0.3 percent by 1002
GMT. The most active January 2013 soyoil contract on the
Dalian Commodity Exchange ended up 0.2 percent.
Palm, soy and crude oil prices at 1002 GMT
Contract Month Last Change Low High Volume
MY PALM OIL SEP2 3017 +9.00 3010 3059 351
MY PALM OIL OCT2 3041 -7.00 3029 3069 8483
MY PALM OIL NOV2 3061 -17.00 3052 3100 20426
CHINA PALM OLEIN JAN3 8084 +94.00 8022 8150 312612
CHINA SOYOIL JAN3 9952 +16.00 9938 10036 436926
CBOT SOY OIL DEC2 56.66 -0.17 56.55 57.05 10239
NYMEX CRUDE OCT2 98.03 +0.77 97.17 98.29 23078
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
