Cpo Futures End Higher

By Durratul Ain Ahmad Fuad

KUALA LUMPUR, May 23 (Bernama) -- The crude palm oil (CPO) futures contract on Bursa Malaysia Derivatives ended higher on Thursday amid the expectation of production rising less than expected, said a trader. 

Palm oil trader David Ng said the market is expecting a double-digit rise in production but the preliminary survey points to single-digit growth.

He said UOB Kay Hian estimated Malaysian palm oil production for the May 1-20 period to increase between seven per cent and 11 per cent. 

“The market is now waiting for the May 1-20 palm oil production estimates from the Malaysian Palm Oil Association (MPOA) which are expected to be released tomorrow,” he told Bernama. 

Meanwhile, Ng said the rebound in the Chicago Board of Trade soybean oil futures and Dalian Commodity Exchange futures also lifted sentiment in the market. 

“We see price supported at RM3,850 a tonne and resistance at RM4,000 a tonne,” he added.

Fastmarkets Palm Oil Analytics senior analyst Dr Sathia Varqa said CPO futures started in the positive and crawled higher by the mid-day close today. 

“There was little fresh positive fundamental news to keep the buying momentum going and lift prices above one per cent. Palm futures closed higher defying the lower soybean oil and palm olein futures on the Dalian Commodity Exchange futures.

“Weaker ringgit may have offered some support for the higher futures today,” he added. 

At the close, the spot month June 2024 contract increased by RM17 to RM3,853 a tonne, July 2024 added RM21 to RM3,885 a tonne, August 2024 rose RM26 to RM3,894 a tonne, September 2024 went up RM24 to RM3,899 a tonne, October 2024 was RM22 higher at RM3,906 a tonne and November 2024 edged up RM25 to RM3,921 a tonne.

Total volume declined to 64,859 lots from Tuesday’s 74,486, while open interest widened to 202,777 contracts from 201,632 previously.

The physical CPO price for June South improved by RM50 to RM3,950 per tonne.

-- BERNAMA