January 16, 2003	Thursday	Ziqa'ad 12, 1423

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 15: Malaysia’s palm oil futures sagged on Wednesday due to a technical correction and disappointing exports data for the first 15 days of January, traders said.

Cargo surveyor SGS said Malaysian palm oil exports for January 1-15 stood at 465,294 tons, slightly down from 468,600 tons for December 1-15, but lower than market expectations of 475,000-480,000 tons.

At the close, the benchmark third-month March contract fell 41 ringgit to 1,624 ($427.37) a ton after trading as low as 1,615 ringgit.

Volume was heavy at 5,974 lots.

Some traders said the market outlook remained foggy because recent rises in palm oil futures — currently at 43-month highs — had trimmed demand from main buyers such as India, China and Pakistan.

Some traders said India’s monthly edible oil stocks, including palm oil and soyaoil, were at 250,000 tons, down from a normal 400,000-600,000 tons.

Deals were reported at 1,655 to 1,670 ringgit a ton for south and at 1,655 ringgit for central.—Reuters