KUALA LUMPUR, April 14: Malaysian palm oil futures climbed more than 4 per cent to a two-week high on Monday as investors bought after bullish comments by a top industry analyst and on signs of growing Chinese buying interest.

Palm oil, up 13 per cent this month, was boosted by comments from Dorab Mistry, who forecast a sharp increase in prices on strong Chinese and Indian demand.

After the first week of May, we should see strong buying interest from China and India and all the traditional palm markets, Mistry told an industry meeting in Dubai.

Mistry, a director with India’s commodities-to-appliances firm Godrej International, said palm oil prices were likely to rise as high as 4,500 ringgit per ton between September and February 2009.

The benchmark June contract on Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange rose 4.08 per cent or 141 ringgit, to 3,595 ringgit ($1,138) per ton. Other traded months rose between 40 and 140 ringgit per ton in overall trade of 9,865 lots of 25 tons each.

Mistry’s forecast of costlier palm oil came at a time when leading cargo surveyor Intertek Testing Services (ITS) showed a recovery in Malaysia’s palm oil shipments.

A source at ITS said palm oil exports for April 1-15 were likely to be around 568,000 tons, down around 15 per cent from a month ago, but sharply higher than what was shipped out in the first 10 days of April.

Malaysian palm oil exports fell 41 per cent in April 1-10 period.

Demand seems to be finally picking up, these are very good numbers, said on dealer with a domestic brokerage.

Mistry’s forecast came at the right time, it should keep the market at higher levels. The cargo surveyors will officially unveil export estimates on Tuesday.

Soyoil for May delivery at the Chicago Board of Trade rose 1.6 per cent in trade during Asian hours while the most-active September contract on China’s Dalian Commodity Exchange was up 4.86 per cent.—Reuters