Palm ends three-day loss tracking soyoil, rising stocks outlook weigh

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian palm oil futures reversed early losses on Wednesday, snapping a three-day decline tracking rival soyoil, but prices were weighed by expectations of higher stockpiles for end-February after a decline in exports.

The benchmark palm oil contract for May delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange closed up 37 ringgit, or 1.02%, at 3,679 ringgit ($908.62) a tonne.

"Malaysia's palm oil stocks likely grew 7.6% month-on-month to 1.43 million tonnes at end-February due to a slower decline in production compared to exports," Ivy Ng, regional head of plantations research at CGS-CIMB Research, said in a note.

CGS-CIMB pegged crude palm oil output at 1.13 million tonnes, little changed from the previous month.

Meanwhile, exports from Malaysia in February fell between 4.6% and 8%, according to data from cargo surveyors.

The high crude palm oil price is likely to continue to ration demand while production is likely to recover post La Niña in the second quarter, Ng said.

Dalian's most-active soyoil contract gained 0.2%, while its palm oil contract was down 1.2%. Soyoil prices on the Chicago Board of Trade rose 0.5%.

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

Oil prices rose, boosted by expectations that OPEC+ producers might decide against increasing output when they meet this week, making palm oil a more attractive option for biodiesel feedstock.