KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian palm oil futures fell for the third straight session on Wednesday on lower-than-expected exports and tracking losses in rival edible oils, while the market worried about diplomatic tensions between Malaysia and India.

The benchmark palm oil contract for March delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange closed down 60 ringgit, or 2 per cent, at 2,945 ringgit ($722.88). Malaysian palm oil exports for January 1-15 rose between 3pc and 5.8pc, cargo surveyors Amspec Malaysia and Intertek Testing Services said on Wednesday, but it was lower than had been expected.

On Tuesday, the contract slumped 2.8pc, the biggest fall in eight months, after Malaysia’s prime minister defended his criticism of India’s religion-based citizenship law and its actions in Kashmir, even as New Delhi halted palm oil imports from the world’s second-largest producer.

Published in Dawn, January 16th, 2020