KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian palm oil futures reversed earlier gains to fall over 1pc in evening trade on Tuesday, as output declines remained slower than in previous years and stocks in key buying markets stayed high.

Palm had earlier gained as much as 1.1pc, hitting its highest in over a week as it tracked strength in US soyoil prices and a weaker ringgit. Losses in the ringgit, palm’s currency of trade, usually make the vegetable oil cheaper for holders of foreign currencies.

The benchmark palm oil contract for May delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange was down 1.1pc at 2,260 ringgit ($553.92) a tonne at the close of trade. Earlier in the session it climbed as much as 1.1pc to 2,311 ringgit, its highest since February 8. Trading volumes stood at 44,707 lots of 25 tonnes each in the evening.

Published in Dawn, February 20th, 2019