BANGKOK, May 18: Malaysian crude palm oil futures closed down on Thursday in thin trade as players waited for a clearer market direction, dealers said.

The benchmark third-month August crude palm oil contract on Bursa Malaysia Derivatives in Kuala Lumpur fell five ringgit to 1,458 ringgit a ton ($405) after trading as low as 1,456 ringgit.

The market was very quiet in the afternoon, no excitement over the market. It was just hanging in minus territory, a Malaysian dealer in Kuala Lumpur said.

There was no improvement in prices, just maintained and down five ringgit because local sentiment is still uncertain, another dealer said.

Other traded months settled down four to ten ringgit. Volume was at 4,873 lots of 25 tons each compared to Wednesday’s 7,098 lots.

Many players still preferred to wait and see if there are developments in Chicago tonight, another dealer said.

In Thursday’s electronic trading during Asian hours, soyaoil fell on CBOT, with the key July contract down another 0.08 cents at 25.74 cents at 1041 GMT.

Soyaoil and palm oil compete for exports and their prices often move in step.

The Malaysian market was expected to move in a narrow range on Friday with immediate resistance at 1,480 and support at 1,450.

I think it will still be range bound. We’re looking at 1,450 for the strong support and 1,480 for the resistance tomorrow, the first dealer said.

It also will depend on how Chicago performs tonight.—Reuters