JAKARTA: Malaysian palm oil futures touched a near two-week low on Monday, before reversing losses to end positive as traders positioned themselves ahead of export data due later this week.

The benchmark June contract on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives ended 1 per cent higher at 2,190 ringgit ($590) a tonne. Prices earlier hit 2,143 ringgit, its lowest levels since March 18 before climbing as high as 2,196 ringgit.

Total traded volume stood at 37,613 lots of 25 tonnes, just above the average 35,000 lots.

Cargo surveyors Intertek Testing Services and Societe Generale de Surveillance are due to release data on Malaysia’s March palm oil exports on Tuesday.

Data earlier this month showed that exports of Malaysian palm oil products for March 1-25 rose 3.5pc and traders see this as a possib le sign of more positive numbers this week.

The US soyoil May contract was little-changed, while the most active September soybean oil contract on the Dalian Commodity Exchange lost 1.4pc.

Published in Dawn, March 31st, 2015

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