JAKARTA: Malaysian palm oil rose on Monday on expectations of positive palm oil export data for September and a weakening ringgit, but volumes remained low as competing edible oil prices slipped and US soybeans hit a four-year low.

The market is anticipating Malaysian palm oil exports to climb by around a third to 1.6 million tonnes this month, traders said, after both leading surveyors reported last week that exports had already reached 1.3 million tonnes as of Thursday, sending prices to a six-week high.

Malaysian palm oil prices usually track the most active soybean oil contract on China’s Dalian Commodities Exchange.

By Monday’s close the benchmark December contract on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange had climbed 0.69 per cent to 2,192 Malaysian ringgit ($668.90) per tonne.

Total traded volume on Monday stood at 26,489 lots of 25 tonnes, below the daily average of 35,000 lots.

Over the coming months, prices could dip further to 2,100-2,150 ringgit before recovering, the trader said, but would not likely dip below the 2,100 level.

Published in Dawn, September 30th , 2014