KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 15: Malaysian crude palm oil futures extended losses on Thursday after disappointing exports data for the first half of December. Societe Generale de Surveillance, a cargo surveyor closely followed by the market, said it estimated Malaysian exports of oil palm products for Dec. 1-15 to have fallen 5.4 per cent to 504,488 tons from the 533,521 tons tracked for Nov. 1-15.

Stocks of Malaysian palm oil stood at a record 1.6 million tones at end-November as demand slowed after the end of most major festivals in Asia. The third-month crude palm oil contract on Bursa Malaysia Derivatives, February, ended down 2 ringgit at 1,395 ringgit ($369.44) a ton, off the day’s low of 1,388.

Overall market volume stood at 4,274 lots of 25 tons each, down from Wednesday’s 4,687 lots. In the physical crude palm oil market, offers for December stood at 1,385 ringgit a ton, against bids at 1,375 ringgit. Trades were reported at 1,380-1,377.50 ringgit.—Reuters