KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 30: Malaysian crude palm oil futures ended 2005 mostly firm after a rise in prices of US soyaoil prompted players to lend technical support to the local market.

The benchmark third-month futures, March , settled flat at 1,415 ringgit ($374) a ton, after trading between 1,412 and 1,423 ringgit.

Other traded months closed down 2 ringgit to up 4 ringgit.

Volume was unusually heavy at 4878 lots of 25 tons each, more than double Thursday’s.

Both palm oil physicals and futures have been hovering above the psychologically important 1,400 ringgit-mark for a week after floods in Malaysia’s northern and eastern regions raised concerns about output from oil palm plantations.

January soyaoil on the Chicago Board of Trade closed up 0.06 cent a lb to close at 20.90 cents. It remained steady in Friday’s electronic session, conducted during Asian business hours.

In the physical market for crude palm oil, offers/bids for January closed at 1,410/1,405 ringgit a ton. Trades were done between 1,410-1,405 ringgit.—Reuters