June 21, 2002	Friday	Rabi-us-Sani 9, 1423

KUALA LUMPUR, June 20: Malaysian crude palm oil futures closed lower on Thursday as players liquidated positions due to concerns about export performance in coming months and prospects of good domestic production.

The benchmark third-month September contract ended down 29 ringgit at 1,391 ringgit ($366.05) a ton.

Overall volume swelled to 6,369 lots from Wednesday’s 2,731.

Given the huge open interest in the market, we may see more liquidation, said a trader in Kuala Lumpur.

He pegged immediate support level at 1,380 ringgit and resistance at 1,420.

The price drop came despite better export data for June 1-20. Cargo surveyor Societe Generale de Surveillance (SGS), the market’s main export tracker, said Malaysian palm oil exports for June 1-20 stood at 601,193 tons, up from 574,449 tons for May 1-20.

Exports officially stood at 939,971 tons for May.

It put palm oil output in June at 960,000-965,000 tons, up from the official 924,797 tons in May.

Exports in June were estimated at 885,000-890,000 tons, compared with the official 939,971 tons in May.

Trades were reported at 1,450 to 1,430 ringgit for June.—Reuters