May 20, 2008	Tuesday	Jamadi-ul-Awwal 14, 1429

JAKARTA, May 19: Indonesian palm oil prices were slightly higher on Monday, despite the absence of the Malaysian futures market, which was closed for a holiday, and with major palm oil buyers such as India also on vacation.

The state marketing centre in Jakarta sold crude palm oil at 10,051 rupiah ($1.08) a kg, up from 9,929 rupiah on Friday, tracking gains in Malaysia crude palm oil futures on Friday.

Producers in North Sumatra’s Medan sold crude palm oil at 9,958 rupiah a kg, up from 9,860 rupiah on Thursday last week.

Producers did not hold an auction on Friday.

Producers were selling their palm oil before the holiday tomorrow. Prices are higher because they took cue from gains in Malaysia market last week, said a dealer at a plantation firm in Medan, home to Belawan port -- Indonesia’s key port for palm oil exports.

Malaysian markets were closed on Monday to celebrate the Buddhist Vesak holiday. Indonesia will hold a holiday on Tuesday.

Dealer said the market was also awaiting comments from industry analyst Dorab Mistry at a palm oil summit in Jakarta this week.

Jakarta is hosting the World Palm Oil Summit and Exhibition which will present top industry analysts including Mistry whose comments often move palm oil market prices.

In Jakarta, refined, bleached, deodorised (RBD) palm olein, used as cooking oil, was traded at 10,150 rupiah a kg, down from 10,200 rupiah on Friday.

Malaysia’s market was closed today so it was a bit difficult to set prices, said a cooking oil dealer in the capital.

No price quotation on the export front were available.—Reuters