KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian palm oil futures fell on Thursday evening on expectations of a rebound in production, retreating from a one-week high hit in the previous session
Also weighing was the fact that demand has yet to show signs of a pickup for Ramadan. Muslims in areas such as India and the Middle East typically consume more palm oil during the month-long festival as they break fasts each day with feasting.
The benchmark palm oil contract for June delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange was down 0.2 percent at 2,708 ringgit ($610.60) a tonne at the end of trading.
On Wednesday, it clocked up its biggest single-session gain in more than five months, tracking rival edible oils and on a bullish outlook for exports in April due to Ramadan demand.
Traded volumes stood at 43,116 lots of 25 tonnes each at Thursday's close.
"The market spiked yesterday due to soyoil, I don't think it can follow through today because of demand," said a trader in Kuala Lumpur. "We're seeing some demand for Ramadan requirement, but it's been the same as it was a few weeks ago. Buyers are not really chasing yet."
Palm oil output in the world's second biggest producer, Malaysia, likely jumped 10.4 percent to 1.39 million tonnes in March, marking the first month-on-month climb in about five months, a Reuters poll showed.
March end-stocks likely rose 0.1 percent to 1.46 million tonnes with exports rising 7 percent to 1.18 million tonnes. Official data will be released by the Malaysian Palm Oil Board on April 10.
Palm oil is expected to move higher into a range of 2,739-2,762 ringgit per tonne, according to a Reuters market analyst for commodities and energy technicals.
Palm oil is affected by price movements in related edible oils, including soyoil, as they compete for a share of the global vegetable oils market.
Soybean oil on the Chicago Board of Trade fell 0.1 percent, while the September soybean oil contract on the Dalian Commodity Exchange rose 0.3 percent.
In other related vegetable oils, the September contract for palm olein on the Dalian Commodity Exchange was up 1.2 percent.
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