* Palm oil stuck in rangebound trade * Widening discount to soyoil could shift demand to palm -traders * Palm oil neutral in 2,361-2,528 ringgit range -technicals (Recasts, updates prices) By Anuradha Raghu KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 17 (Reuters) - Malaysian palm oil futures ended higher in rangebound trade on Wednesday, as rising exports offset analyst expectations that the market will fall further on high stocks. Palm oil futures have lost 22 percent so far this year, prompting top analyst Dorab Mistry to forecast at a conference on Tuesday that prices could fall to 2,200 ringgit in the next four to six weeks on a record build-up in Malaysian stocks. But exports in the first half of October have climbed as much as 16.3 percent from a month ago, signalling strong buying interest from the likes of the European Union and Pakistan, data from a cargo surveyor showed. "The market is digesting all the news and views spoken yesterday, it will remain rangebound until more is known about demand," said a trader with a local commodities brokerage in Malaysia. The benchmark January contract on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange edged up 0.2 percent to close at 2,471 ringgit ($814) per tonne, after trading in a tight range of 2,456-2,489 ringgit. Total traded volumes stood at 44,600 lots of 25 tonnes each, higher than the usual 25,000 lots. Technical analysis showed that palm oil remained neutral, trapped in a range of 2,361-2,528 ringgit per tonne, said Reuters analyst Wang Tao. Another trader with a foreign commodities brokerage in Malaysia said the upcoming U.S. presidential elections have made global investors more cautious. On Tuesday, U.S. President Barack Obama and Republican rival Mitt Romney clashed repeatedly on jobs and energy. While market reaction in Asia has been muted, U.S. investors are likely to focus on the outcome as it gives an idea on the kind of economic and financial policies that may come into play after the polls. "The U.S markets are quiet because of the presidential election next month, so people are watching carefully. That's why the (palm oil) market can't move," the Malaysian trader said. Palm oil mostly takes its cues from U.S. soyoil and Brent crude, as it competes with the edible oil for food demand and the crude oil grade for use in the energy sector. Brent crude oil fell on Wednesday as lingering worry about the global economy overshadowed relief that Spain avoided a ratings downgrade and optimism prompted by firm U.S. corporate results. U.S. soyoil for December delivery inched up 0.4 percent in late Asian trade after earlier losses on expectations of higher soybean supplies in the Americas. The most active January 2013 soybean oil contract on the Dalian Commodity Exchange closed 0.1 percent higher. Palm, soy and crude oil prices at 1006 GMT Contract Month Last Change Low High Volume MY PALM OIL NOV2 2393 -4.00 2386 2402 204 MY PALM OIL DEC2 2440 +5.00 2423 2455 7861 MY PALM OIL JAN3 2471 +5.00 2456 2489 20423 CHINA PALM OLEIN JAN3 6884 -18.00 6856 6936 260392 CHINA SOYOIL JAN3 9116 +8.00 9080 9164 276286 CBOT SOY OIL DEC2 50.69 +0.22 50.29 50.86 6873 NYMEX CRUDE NOV2 92.18 +0.09 91.96 92.76 21065 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

Source