KUALA LUMPUR, April 19: Malaysian crude palm oil futures jumped 3.2 per cent on Thursday as the market expected better export numbers in data due to be released on Friday from cargo surveyors.

The benchmark third-month July contract on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange ended up 70 ringgit at 2,230 ringgit per ton.

The market is picking up from yesterday's sell-down in anticipation of very positive export numbers, one dealer said.

Players are quickly covering positions. Other traded contracts rose between 49 and 79 ringgit in overall traded volume of 20,519 lots of 25 tons each.

Malaysian palm oil surged 40 per cent last year, boosted by biodiesel demand, and analysts expect the market to rise around 20 per cent this year. Traders said palm oil, which gained close to 12 per cent this year, was supported by a rise in US soyaoil prices.

Malaysian palm oil often tracks the US soyaoil market because both commodities are used in products ranging from food and cosmetics to biodiesel.

Malaysia's exports are picking up after months of slowdown because of strong demand from the world's top buyers, China and India. Traders said palm oil exports are expected to reach about 800,000 tons for the first 20 days of April, bouyed by strong global demand for edible oils.

Exports of Malaysian palm oil products for April 1-15 rose 47 per cent to 666,793 tons from 454,791 tons shipped between March 1, and 15, cargo surveyor Intertek Testing Services said.

Malaysia's end-March palm oil stocks fell 10.6 per cent to 1.34 million tons while exports jumped almost 30 per cent during the month and production failed to keep pace, the Malaysian Palm Oil Board said.

They estimated Malaysia's palm oil imports from Indonesia in January and February slipped to around 37,000 tons from about 300,000 during the corresponding months in 2006.

In the physical market, crude palm oil for April shipment in the southern region was quoted at 2,310/2,330 ringgit a ton.—Reuters