May 27, 2008	Tuesday	Jamadi-ul-Awwal 21, 1429

KUALA LUMPUR, May 26: Malaysian crude palm oil futures rose 0.5 per cent on Monday, extending four days of gains as vegetable oils markets firmed as crude oil rose towards record levels, traders said.

Although traders were betting on analysts’ forecasts last week that palm will restart its rally on record crude prices, the market was weighed by weaker export numbers from cargo surveyors.

Palm oil, used in products from biofuels to ice-cream, is roughly 18 per cent off record highs of 4,486 ringgit in March but has gained nearly 20 per cent so far this year.

The benchmark August contract on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange settled up 19 ringgit to 3,673 ringgit ($1,138) per ton, after going as high as 3,705 ringgit.

The overall shortage in commodities worldwide and strong crude oil prices have worked favourably for palm oil.

Crude oil is now seen to wield a stronger influence over palm oil through soyoil,” said a trader with a foreign commodities broker.

Exports might seem disappointing but it has more or less held on to levels a month before. Other traded months rose between 16 and 59 ringgit.

Traded volumes stood at 8,638 lots of 25 tons each, easing a little from the usual 10,000 lots.

Malaysian crude palm oil prices may resume their rally if record crude oil prices boost demand for alternative fuels, soaking up high stocks, leading industry analysts said on Friday.

Top analysts Dorab Mistry and James Fry noted record crude oil’s growing influence on vegetable oils like palm, thanks to the increasing biodiesel incentives and mandates in Europe and the Americas, and to some extent Asia.

In Malaysia’s physical market, crude palm oil for May and June shipment in the southern region was quoted at 3,680/3,700 ringgit.

Trades were done between 3,680 and 3,700 ringgit a ton.—Reuters