CRUDE palm oil (CPO) futures contract on Bursa Malaysia Derivatives ended higher today, tracking the soybean oil gains on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) as well as expectation of weaker output, said a dealer.

Palm oil trader David Ng said, however, that lower export estimates weigh on prices.

“Hence, we see support at RM3,650 and resistance at RM3,850 a tonne,” he told Bernama.

Mumbai-based Sunvin Group commodity research head Anilkumar Bagani said Bursa Malaysia’s CPO futures were seen trading higher today following the bullish momentum in Chinese vegetable oil futures during Asian hours and upward price action in crude oil overnight.

“The market has ignored a selloff in CBOT soybean oil futures overnight. Overall activity is subdued amid the year-end holidays,” he said.

On another note, he shared that the attack on Red Sea cargoes is still haunting the markets with more vessels pulling out from shipments.

“On external markets, crude oil prices climbed more than 2% yesterday to its highest level this month, as further attacks on ships in the Red Sea prompted fears of shipping disruptions as well as hopes of interest rate cuts that could boost economic growth and fuel demand,” he added.

At the close, the spot month January 2024 contract added RM1 to RM3,700 per tonne while February 2024 and March 2024 gained RM7 each to RM3,750 and RM3,770 per tonne respectively.

April 2024 and June 2024 increased RM11 each to RM3,771 and RM3,717 per tonne respectively while May 2024 rose RM15 to RM3,753 per tonne.

Total volume advanced to 43,569 lots from 21,999 lots yesterday while open interest increased to 237,821 contracts from 217,402 previously.

The physical CPO price for January South rose RM10 to RM3,730 per tonne. – Bernama, December 27, 2023