By Michael Taylor
JAKARTA, Aug 4 (Reuters) - Malaysian palm oil futures traded
lower on Thursday, tracking comparable vegetable oils lower on
persistent global economic jitters and crude prices that flirted
with one-month lows.
The benchmark October contract KPOc3 on the Bursa Malaysia
Derivatives Exchange traded down 0.6 percent at 3,116 ringgit
($1,048) per tonne, but off an earlier low of 3,106 ringgit.
Traded volumes for the contract were 4,460 lots of 25 tonnes
each, compared to 9,607 lots on Wednesday.
"We have seen a lot of bearish pressure across the board,
linked to the big macroeconomic picture in the United States,
plus the fact that crude is slightly cheaper," said Abah Ofon, a
Singapore-based analyst at Standard Chartered Bank.
The latest figures continued to paint a sombre picture for
the U.S. economy, with the pace of growth in the services sector
falling in July to its lowest since February 2010, while new
U.S. factory orders also fell in June.
The reports followed poor figures on U.S. consumer spending
and factory activity. That, along with the festering European
debt crisis, is likely to keep buyers cautious.
The yen fell on Thursday after intervention by Japanese
authorities, though investors steered clear of riskier assets,
uncertain if the European Central Bank would join the fray by
increasing bond purchases to fight a crisis of confidence.
Ofon added that further price pressure in August may come
from a build-up of stocks in Indonesia ahead of an expected
change in the export tax rate later this month.
Indonesia, the world's biggest palm oil producer and
exporter, could lower the maximum export tax rate in August.
Ofon forecasts second half benchmark prices to average 3,400
ringgit.
In comparable markets, U.S. soybeans for November delivery
eased, while the most active May 2012 soyoil on
China's Dalian Commodity Exchange also dipped.
"Sluggish U.S. soyoil due to a weak global economy and
favourable crop weather in U.S. soybean planting regions
pressured China's soyoil market," said Zhan Zhi Hong, an oil
analyst with Shenzhen-based China Merchant Futures.
"Choppy trade will continue in China's soyoil if U.S.
markets fail to set a clear and strong direction," she added.
This week, benchmark palm oil prices have been supported by
rising export data, leading to a near two-week high of 3,144
ringgit on Thursday.
Exports of Malaysian palm oil products for July jumped 13.5
percent to 1,628,688 tonnes, cargo surveyor Societe Generale de
Surveillance said on Monday.
Traders also say that the fasting month of Ramadan will also
lead to lower output in Indonesia and Malaysia, the top two
global palm producers.
On Thursday, a leading agronomist said Southeast Asian palm
oil output growth will slow in the second half of 2011 as the
impact of El Nino weather conditions from two years ago
manifests with lower oil-yielding palm fruits.
Crude oil posted a modest rebound from one-month lows on
Thursday, tracking a bounce in Asian stock markets ahead of key
U.S. employment reports.
On the economic calendar, investors are eagerly awaiting
July's U.S. non-farm payroll number, due Friday, and updated
USDA crop forecasts due to be released on Aug. 11.
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=2.972 ringgit)
(Additional reporting by Angie Teo in Kula Lumpur; Editing by
Clarence Fernandez)
