September 20, 2007	Thursday	Ramazan 07, 1428

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 19: Malaysian crude palm oil futures ended 1.5 per cent lower on Wednesday as investors booked profits after two straight days of strong gains and as rival soyabean oil declined in Asian trade.

Dealers said the market awaited export estimates for the first 20 days of September, due to be issued on Thursday by cargo surveyors Intertek Testing Services and Societe Generale de Surveillance.

The most-active December contract on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange settled down 38 ringgit, or 1.5 per cent, at 2,571 ringgit ($745) a ton, after hitting an intraday low of 2,553 ringgit.

Players are out to take profits both in the palm oil and soyaoil markets after a good price rally, so this has put quite a bit of pressure on palm oil, one trader said.

The export numbers tomorrow should be relatively strong and this should spur some recovery,” another trader said.

Other traded months fell between 32 and 44 ringgit in overall trade of 11,784 lots of 25 tons each. The palm oil market has surged as soyaoil and crude hit record highs and it is just 7 per cent off an historic high of 2,764 ringgit reached in June.

Oil rose above $82 a barrel on Wednesday, closing in on a record hit the previous day after the US Federal Reserve cut interest rates and raised expectations of still robust energy demand in the world’s top consumer.

US light crude rose 68 cents to $82.19 a barrel, after gains of 94 cents on Tuesday, when prices hit a fresh record of $82.38.

In the physical market, crude palm oil for September shipment in the southern region was quoted at 2,600/2,610 ringgit a ton.

—Reuters