Palm climbs for seventh day as Indonesia warns of La Nina hit

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian palm oil futures rose for a seventh straight day on Tuesday, reversing early losses, as top producer Indonesia warned of the La Nina weather pattern impacting agriculture output.

The benchmark palm oil contract for December delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange settled up 9 ringgit, or 0.3pc, at 3,003 ringgit ($725.36) a tonne.

Indonesian President Joko Widodo on Tuesday urged his ministers to prepare for the potentially hazardous impact of an upcoming La Nina that can cause flooding, landslides and impact agricultural output.

Exports from Indonesia in August stood at 2.68 million tonnes, 14.4pc lower than a month ago, data from the Indonesian Palm Oil Association (GAPKI) showed.

Traders in the local market have signalled that the world's second largest palm buyer, China, was booking for October, November and January deliveries, said Paramalingam Supramaniam, director at Selangor-based brokerage Pelindung Bestari Sdn Bhd.

Malaysian foreign minister said China had committed to purchase 1.7 million tonnes of palm oil until 2023 and had pledged to encourage increased shipments of sustainably produced Malaysian palm oil.

October exports from Malaysia are likely to climb 3.6pc on-month ahead of the Diwali festive season in India, Adrian Kok, equity analyst, Kenanga Investment Bank, said in a research note.

Earlier in the session, palm fell to an intraday low of 1.41pc.

A lack of demand in the European vegetable oils market due to lower sunflower and soybean oil prices weighed on prices, said Marcello Cultrera, institutional sales manager and broker at Phillip Futures in Kuala Lumpur.

Dalian's most-active soyoil contract rose 0.06pc, while its palm oil contract gained 0.29pc.

Soyoil prices on the Chicago Board of Trade were up 1.21pc.

Palm oil is affected by price movements in related oils as they compete for a share in the global vegetable oils market.