Palm oil falls on stronger Ringgit, but rivals make up losses

Malaysian palm futures fell on Tuesday, as the weaker ringgit overshadowed 'the strength of rival edible oils from Dalian and Chicago. Market participants were waiting for further information to be released by the Malaysian Palm Oil Board next week.

By midday, the benchmark March palm oil contract on the Bursa Derivatives Exchange had fallen 14 ringgit or 0.35% to 4,000 Ringgit ($987.41).

In the morning, the contract was traded within a narrow range of?3,997-4.034 ringgits per ton.

A Kuala Lumpur based trader stated that the CPO future today is tracking Dalian performance and ringgit while waiting for the 12th January MPOB Report. He added both?Dalian palm and soyoil contract pared some earlier gains.

Dalian's most active soyoil contract increased by 0.71% while its palm oil contract added by 0.28%. Prices of soyoil on the Chicago Board of Trade barely changed. They were?up 0.08 percent.

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

The Malaysian Ringgit, the contract's currency, has firmed by 0.47% against U.S. Dollar, making it less attractive to foreign currency holders.

A survey revealed that Malaysia's palm oil inventories in December were expected to be at their highest level in nearly seven years, due to strong production outweighing a modest increase in exports.

Five dealers report that India's palm-oil imports in December fell to an eight-month low, due to the weaker winter demand. Refiners also increased their purchases of other oils, such as sunflower and soyoil.

The statistics bureau reported that Indonesia exported 20,85 million tonnes of crude palm oil and refined palm oils between January and November 2025, an increase of 4.32% on the previous year.

Technical analyst Wang Tao stated that palm oil is neutral between 3,975-4000 ringgit per tonne, and a breakout could indicate a direction. ($1 = 4.0510 ringgit)

(source: Reuters)