April 1, 2003	Tuesday	Muharram 28, 1424

KUALA LUMPUR, March 31: Malaysian crude palm oil futures fell on Monday as fears of a prolonged war in Iraq outweighed bullish exports data.

March export numbers were good but people are concerned about shipments going forward. It looks like it’s going to be a long war, said a trader in Kuala Lumpur.

The benchmark third-month futures, June ended down 27 ringgit at $377.11 a ton.

Overall volume stood at 5,268 lots, down from Friday’s 8,350 lots.

Some chartists saw more downside potential, pegging support at 1,400 and 1,385 ringgit.

Cargo surveyor Societe Generale de Surveillance estimated Malaysian palm oil exports for March at 1.0 million tons, up from 731,215 tons for February.

In the physical market, sellers offered the April crude palm oil (CPO) contract at 1,465 ringgit a ton against bids of 1,455 ringgit for southern and central regions.

Trades were done at 1,465 to 1,460 ringgit.—Reuters