KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian palm oil futures fell on Wednesday evening, charting a third consecutive session of declines, as the market was weighed down by weaker related edible oils and slowing exports.

The benchmark palm oil contract for September delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange edged down 0.04 per cent to 2,262 ringgit ($564.94) per tonne at the end of the trading day, near the previous session’s two-year low. Palm fell as much as 3pc on Tuesday to 2,238 ringgit, and is down 6.9pc so far for the month. Trading volumes stood at 65,817 lots of 25 tonnes each at the close of trade.

“The market is down tracking Dalian, exports are also not so good,” said a futures trader in Singapore, referring to China’s Dalian Commodity Exchange. Malaysian palm oil exports fell 6.4pc during June 1-20 compared with the corresponding period last month, according to inspection company AmSpec Agri Malaysia on Wednesday.

Another cargo surveyor, Societe Generale de Surveillance, reported a 10pc decline in exports for the same duration.

Prices of commodities in China tumbled on Tuesday, with investor sentiment shaken by an intensifying trade war between Beijing and Washington. Palm saw sharper declines earlier in the day, but recovered some losses on a recovery, said another palm futures trader. “A weaker ringgit added some support.”

A weaker ringgit typically boosts demand for palm by making it cheaper for holders of foreign currencies. It was down 0.05pc at 4.0040 against the dollar on Wednesday evening, its weakest levels since mid-January.

The Chicago July soybean oil contract, which had declined 2.4pc in its previous trading session, was last up 0.9pc. Meanwhile, the September soybean oil on China’s Dalian Commodity Exchange fell 1.7pc, while the Dalian September palm oil contract was down 1.2pc.

Palm oil prices track the performance of other edible oils, as they compete for a share in the global vegetable oils market. Palm oil may bounce to 2,290 ringgit per tonne, according to Reuters market analyst for commodities and energy technicals Wang Tao.

Published in Dawn, June 21st, 2018