Palm falls as traders await fresh leads

• Malaysian palm oil futures took a turn to close lower on Thursday, logging another session of declines.
• The benchmark palm oil contract for the December delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange was down 0.2pc at 2,137 ringgit per tonne at the close.

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian palm oil futures took a turn to close lower on Thursday, logging another session of declines, as traders sold off in the last hour of trading to wait for clearer market leads.

The benchmark palm oil contract for the December delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange was down 0.2pc at 2,137 ringgit per tonne at the close.

Palm was trading higher for most of the session tracking the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) soyoil, but traders noted there was a lack of positive market catalysts to bolster the upside.

The futures contract fell more than 1pc in the previous session, its largest drop in over a week.

"The market was very choppy. It was up earlier tracking US soyoil, but buying was overdone thus the selloff later in the day," said a Kuala Lumpur-based trader.

US soyoil futures on the CBOT were last up 0.03pc, after rising to a two-and-a-half-week high on Wednesday.

"Market is not expecting robust exports for October, and there could be a slow build-up of stockpiles, so many traders are not keen on long positions," another trader said.

The Dalian commodity exchange is closed this week for holidays.