KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 30: Malaysian crude palm oil futures closed up 2.7 per cent on Thursday as higher-than-expected export data announced by cargo surveyors prompted speculative buying.

Dealers said a recovery in crude oil and the likelihood of Pakistan cutting duties on palm oil imports also boosted sentiment.

Export numbers are not so bad as the market was expecting much lower data, said one dealer.

Exports of Malaysian palm products for November fell 5 per cent to 1,359,790 tons from 1,430,900 in October, cargo surveyor Societe Generale de Surveillance said.

Earlier, another cargo surveyor, Intertek Testing Services, said exports during the month fell 5.7pc to 1,366,111 tons.

The trade had been expecting a decline of around 8 to 10 per cent in November exports.

Other traded months were up between 43 and 55 ringgit. Overall volume stood at 14,604 lots of 25 tons each.

Crude oil is also moving up and Pakistan is trying to cut import tariffs, all these factors have contributed to the rise, another trader said.

Pakistan is likely to reduce the import duty on palm oil in December as domestic prices have started surging, industry officials told Reuters on Wednesday.

The duty cut should be coming in December, said the industry source.

Amjad Rasheed, chairman of the private Pakistan Vanaspati Manufacturers Association, said the group discussed the possible duty cut on the import of palm oil with the Pakistani tax officials.

Palm oil market sometimes follows crude oil, driven by rapid growth in the global biofuel industry based on vegetable oils.

Crude palm oil prices have gained more than 15 percent this month, boosted by higher soyaoil prices and forecasts of strong demand for vegetable oil-based biodiesel in the coming months.

In the physical palm oil market, December shipment for the southern region was quoted at 1,895/1,900 ringgit a ton. Trades were done between 1,880 and 1,900 ringgit.—Reuters