Demand concerns and a stronger ringgit counteract a firmer soyoil, which keeps palm steady.

The price of Malaysian palm oils futures was little changed on Tuesday, despite a strengthening soyoil and concerns about demand.

At the midday break, the benchmark contract for palm oil delivery in January on the Bursa Derivatives exchange gained 10 ringgit or 0.24% to 4,219 Ringgit ($1,017.61). The contract has rallied over the last four sessions.

Paramalingam Supramaniam said that the contract increased in line with the soybean oil price, but worries about the November demand, and the strength of ringgit, capped gains.

Supramaniam stated that the upper limit will be maintained until more information is available about the November demand, which from the initial figures does not appear to be good.

Dalian's palm oil contract, which is the most active contract, rose 1.7% while soyoil prices increased by 0.75%. Chicago Board of Trade soyoil prices were down by 0.04%.

As palm oil competes to gain a share in the global vegetable oils industry, it tracks the price changes of competing edible oils.

Oil prices dropped as a report from the industry showed that crude and fuel stocks rose in the U.S. last week, which is the world's largest crude consumer. This reinforced the mounting concern about the market being oversupplied.

Palm oil is less appealing as a biodiesel feedstock due to the weaker crude oil futures.

The palm ringgit's trade currency strengthened by 0.34% against dollars, making it slightly more expensive to buyers who hold foreign currencies.

Data published by the European Commission revealed that the European Union's soybean imports, which began July 2025/26, had reached 4,40 million metric tonnes by November 16 - down 16% compared to the same period one year prior. Palm oil imports, meanwhile, fell 18%, reaching 1,08 million tons.

Technical analyst Wang Tao suggested that a double bottom and projection analysis could indicate that palm oil gains may continue to grow into the range of 4,282 to 4,303 Ringgit per metric tonne.

(source: Reuters)