KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian palm oil futures hit a fresh one-month top in early trade on Thursday, in line for a fourth session of gains in five, as expectations of falling end-March stockpiles boosted the market.
The benchmark palm oil contract for June delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange rose 0.7 percent to 2,471 ringgit ($639.33) a tonne at the midday break.
It earlier rose to 2,478 ringgit a tonne, its highest since March 7.
Trading volumes stood at 12,639 lots of 25 tonnes each.
"The market is looking at end-stocks reducing," said a Kuala Lumpur-based trader, referring to Malaysian inventory levels at the end of March.
Another trader said news of China's increase in tariffs by up to 25 percent on 128 US products including soybeans also lent support to the market.
"The spread (between soyoil and palm oil) will widen and palm will be more attractive," he said.
Palm oil stockpiles in Malaysia, the world's second largest producer of the tropical oil, are expected to have slipped to their lowest in five months, down 8.6 percent from February to 2.27 million tonnes, according to a Reuters poll on Thursday.
The survey also showed exports to have risen to the highest in over a year and a half at 1.57 million tonnes, up 19.3 percent from February. Meanwhile production is seen up 11.3 percent to 1.49 million tonnes in March, its first monthly gain in five.
Official data will be released by industry regulator, the Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB), on April 10.
In related oils, the Chicago Board of Trade's May soybean oil contract was up 0.3 percent.
China's Dalian Commodity Exchange is closed on Thursday for a national holiday.
Palm oil prices are impacted by movements in rival edible oils as they compete for a share in the global vegetable oils market.
Palm oil may rise into a range of 2,471-2,498 ringgit per tonne, according to Reuters market analyst for commodities and energy technicals Wang Tao.
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