KUALA LUMPUR, March 17: Malaysian crude palm oil futures fell as much as 4.7 per cent to touch a one-month low on Monday as weaker global soyaoil markets and talk of a build-up in palm reserves dragged down prices, dealers said.

Long liquidation on the weakening US economy led by Bear Stearn’s troubles have weighed heavily on commodities and demand for vegetable oils appears to have slowed a little, said a Malaysian broker with a foreign commodities trading firm.

The benchmark June contract on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange tumbled as much as 174 ringgit to 3,515 ringgit ($1,102) a ton, a level not seen since February 18.

The contract then settled down 89 ringgit at 3,600 ringgit.

Other traded months fell between 86 and 116 ringgit in overall traded volume, which rose 16,488 lots of 25 tons each from the usual 10,000 lots.

Palm oil supplies in Malaysia are expected to rise on strong production, plantation officials said.

Traders said China and India, the world’s largest consumers of vegetable oils, have built up some reserves of palm oil and soyaoil, potentially slowing down vegetable oil shipments.

Prices are still too high and these countries are waiting for a bigger correction, said another trader, referring to Indian state run trading firm MMTC Ltd’s decision not to import palm oil and refined palm olein.

Exports of Malaysian palm oil products in March 1-15 rose 10.1 per cent to 664,446 tons from 603,389 tons between Feb. 1 and 15, cargo surveyor Intertek Testing Services said on Saturday.

Another surveyor, Societe Generale de Surveillance reported a 9 per cent increase to 675,013 tons in the same period.

In Malaysia’s physical market, crude palm oil for March shipment in the southern region was quoted at 3,600/3,630 ringgit a ton. Trades were done at 3,600 ringgit.—Reuters