SINGAPORE, Nov 27: Malaysian palm oil futures edged down on Tuesday, as traders booked profits from a near one-week high after Greece’s international lenders agreed on a financial aid deal that boosted market optimism.

On the domestic front, investors are watching Malaysian palm oil output to gauge whether stocks will reach another record high, especially after the latest cargo surveyor data pointed to weaker export demand.

“Demand is tepid, with rumours that India may import on domestic shortfall. Speculators are also seen pushing up futures amid optimism that output in the fourth quarter will avert the looming ‘supply cliff’,” said a trader with a local commodities brokerage in Malaysia.

The benchmark February contract on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange fell 0.9 per cent to close at 2,410 ringgit ($792) per ton, but off the day’s high of 2,458 ringgit, a level last seen on Nov 21. Total traded volumes stood at 35,938 lots of 25 tons each, higher than the usual 25,000 lots.

Technicals showed palm oil would revisit its Nov 20 high of 2,485 per ton based on a wave analysis, said Reuters market analyst Wang Tao. Cargo surveyor data showed a slight decline of below two per cent for Malaysian palm oil shipments in the first 25 days of November from a month ago.

The market, however, expects weaker palm oil prices to stimulate demand for price-sensitive markets such as India and Pakistan in the next few weeks. Palm oil stocks in China could hit one million tons by year-end, up from 790,000 tons last week, fed by surging imports and stagnant domestic demand, the China National Grain and Oils Information Centre said on its website.—Reuters