CPO Futures End Lower On Weaker Soybean Oil After Argentina Tax Move

By K. Naveen Prabu

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 23 (Bernama) -- Crude palm oil (CPO) futures on Bursa Malaysia Derivatives closed lower today, pressured by weaker soybean oil prices after Argentina scrapped its export tax on grains.

Palm oil trader David Ng said the policy shift made Argentine soybeans and related products more competitive, putting pressure on global vegetable oil markets.  

“Argentina is one of the world’s top soybean exporters. By removing export taxes, it has effectively flooded the market with cheaper soy oil and soy meal, an abundance that weakens prices across the vegetable oil complex and pulls down palm oil with it,” he told Bernama.

On Monday, Argentina’s government temporarily scrapped export taxes on soy, corn, wheat, their by-products, including biodiesel, as well as beef and poultry, under a decree lasting until the end of October or until declared exports reach US$7 billion, in a bid to boost dollar inflows and stabilise the weakening peso.

However, Ng noted that expectations of slower production and firm export performance are helping to support sentiment in the near term.

“We see support at RM4,300 per tonne and resistance at RM4,580,” he said.

At the close, the spot-month October 2025 contract fell RM79 to RM4,304 per tonne, November 2025 slid RM92 to RM4,323, and December 2025 dropped RM100 to RM4,343.

January 2026 declined RM103 to RM4,360 per tonne, February 2026 eased RM103 to RM4,361, and March 2026 shed RM93 to RM4,343.

Volume increased to 157,094 lots from 54,679 on Monday, while open interest went up to 266,151 contracts from 261,122 previously.

The physical CPO price for October South decreased by RM60 to RM4,340 per tonne.

-- BERNAMA