KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian palm oil futures failed to hold on to early gains and ended lower on Friday due to a strong ringgit, but anticipation over firm demand limited losses and lifted the tropical oil to its second straight weekly rise.

The benchmark July contract on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives exchange closed 0.2 per cent lower at 2,154 ringgit ($601) a tonne, with prices trading between 2,144 and 2,176 ringgit.

Palm, the world’s most traded vegetable oil was trapped in a rangebound trade for most of the week, with sentiment mixed on rising supplies and a strong local currency, alongside a recovery in demand.

The benchmark contract nudged up 0.5pc for the week, marking its second straight weekly rise. Total traded volume stood at 52,343 lots of 25 tonnes on Friday, much higher than the usual 35,000 lots.

Published in Dawn, April 25th, 2015

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