RTRS:VEGOILS-Palm oil hovers below 9-mth high, exports support
* Futures up almost 7 percent this year
* Palm oil to stay around 3,398 ringgit -technicals
* Exports jump by 37-42 percent in March 1-15
(Updates prices, adds details)
By Chew Yee Kiat
SINGAPORE, March 16 (Reuters) - Malaysian palm oil
futures were almost flat on Friday, as some traders booked
profits from a nine-month high notched in the previous session,
while strong exports and soybean supply fears in drought-hit
South America supported prices.
Palm oil recorded four straight sessions of gains this week
on upbeat price forecasts in an earlier conference and positive
news that lifted the global economic outlook. The edible oil
futures are trading almost 7 percent higher this year.
"The market's trading in a tight range today. There's some
profit taking as the market has been up almost 200 ringgit since
the palm oil conference (last week)," said a trader with a
foreign commodities brokerage in Malaysia.
"In terms of fundamentals, exports are picking up very
strongly and that's a supportive factor," he added.
By the midday break, benchmark June palm oil futures
on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange lost one
ringgit to 3,396 ringgit ($1,113) per tonne. Prices touched a
new peak of 3,418 ringgit, a level not seen since last June.
Traded volumes on Friday stood at 11,157 lots of 25 tonnes
each, slightly less than the usual 12,500 lots.
On the technicals front, Reuters market analyst Wang Tao
said palm oil is struggling around a resistance at 3,398 ringgit
per tonne.
Demand prospects have been brightening this month as both
cargo surveyors reported a 37 percent and 42 percent
month-on-month increase in Malaysian exports for the first 15
days of March.
Data from the surveyors said European demand surged up in
early March, as exports to the region more than doubled compared
to a month ago.
Market players meanwhile are keeping a close watch on the
official planting forecasts from the U.S. Department of
Agriculture due at the end of the month to help gauge soybean
output for the year.
Brent crude rebounded above $123 on Friday after a sharp
sell off the previous session, as rising tensions between Iran
and the West fuelled an oil rally that has forced Western
leaders to prepare a release of their strategic oil reserves.
In other vegetable oil markets, the most active U.S. soyoil
contract for May delivery edged down 0.4 percent while
the most active September 2012 soyoil contract on
China's Dalian Commodity exchange lost 0.1 percent.
Palm, soy and crude oil prices at 0536 GMT
Contract Month Last Change Low High Volume
MY PALM OIL APR2 3393 +0.00 3393 3410 493
MY PALM OIL MAY2 3396 -7.00 3393 3422 3094
MY PALM OIL JUN2 3396 -1.00 3394 3418 5040
CHINA PALM OLEIN SEP2 8616 -12.00 8616 8694 127882
CHINA SOYOIL SEP2 9632 -18.00 9630 9724 345412
CBOT SOY OIL MAY2 55.26 -0.22 55.26 55.55 3542
NYMEX CRUDE APR2 105.45 +0.34 105.37 105.64 4646
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
