Malaysian palm oil tracks rival edible oils lower

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian palm oil futures fell on Wednesday for a fourth consecutive session, as the market tracked rival edible oils lower.

The benchmark palm oil contract for March delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange slid 70 ringgit, or 1.48%, to 4,655 ringgit ($1,041.39) a metric ton in early trade. Dalian’s most-active soyoil contract fell 2.61%, while its palm oil contract shed 1.11%. Soyoil prices on the Chicago Board of Trade were down 0.94%. Palm oil tracks price movements of rival edible oils, as they compete for a share in the global vegetable oils market.

The ringgit, palm’s currency of trade, weakened 0.11% against the dollar, making the commodity cheaper for buyers holding foreign currencies.

Malaysia maintained its January export tax for crude palm oil at 10% and raised its reference price to 5,001.72 ringgit per metric ton, a circular on the Malaysian Palm Oil Board website showed. Palm oil prices are expected to remain above 4,800 ringgit in December, supported by the recovery of soybean oil prices, the Malaysian Palm Oil Council said. European Union soybean imports in the 2024/25 season that started in July had reached 6.27 million metric tons by Dec. 15, up 16% from a year earlier, while palm oil imports were at 1.42 million tons, down 16%, data published by the European Commission showed.

The European Parliament gave its final approval to a one-year delay of Europe’s landmark deforestation law, which will begin from December 2025. Oil prices traded in a narrow range as investors remained cautious ahead of an expected rate cut by the US Federal Reserve. Palm oil may test support at 4,624 ringgit per metric ton, with a good chance of breaking below this level and falling towards 4,527 ringgit, Reuters technical analyst Wang Tao said.