January 4, 2003	Saturday	Shawwal 30, 1423

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 3: Malaysia’s palm oil futures traded sideways at the close on Friday, waiting for fresh leads, but weekend short covering helped plucked prices from early lows, traders said.

The benchmark third-month March futures contract fell three ringgit to 1,628 ringgit ($428.42) a ton after trading as low as 1,613 ringgit due to a technical correction.

Volume was moderate at 3,322 lots compared with 7,527 lots on Thursday.

There’s nothing to say. People are waiting for new leads, said one trader.

Some chartists pegged support levels at 1,592 and 1,535 ringgit, adding that the downward pressure was intact.

Resistance level was seen at 1,680 ringgit.

Physical CPO for January/February was offered by sellers at 1,645 ringgit a ton against bids of 1,635 ringgit. There were no deals.—Reuters