Palm dips on weaker Dalian, set for second weekly fall

JAKARTA: Malaysian palm oil futures fell for a fourth straight session on Friday, mirroring movements in Dalian rivals, and were on track for a second straight weekly loss.

The benchmark palm oil contract for April delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange fell 29 ringgit, or 0.72%, to 4,008 ringgit ($1,028.75) a metric ton by the midday break.

It has declined 3.51% so far in the week.

“The futures are tracking Dalian’s weak performance, as well as soft demand from the physical side,” said a Kuala Lumpur-based trader. Dalian’s most-active soyoil contract was down 0.86%, while its palm oil contract fell 1.54%. Soyoil prices on the Chicago Board of Trade dropped 0.33%.

Palm oil tracks price movements of rival edible oils, as it competes for a share of the global vegetable oils market.

Chinese markets will be closed from February 16 to 23 for the Lunar New Year holiday.

Malaysia has raised its March crude palm oil reference price, a change that maintains the export duty at 9%, a circular on the Malaysian Palm Oil Board website showed.

Indonesia’s move to pause biodiesel expansion and expectations of higher production in the coming months are likely to pressure palm oil prices, although strong demand and slowing growth in overall output could limit the downside, analysts said.

Indonesia’s palm oil seed sales in 2025 implied that planting remained substantial despite disruptions caused by land seizures by a government forestry task force, said Julian McGill, MD and founder of advisory firm Glenauk Economics.

The ringgit, palm’s currency of trade, strengthened 0.1% against the dollar, making the commodity more expensive for buyers holding foreign currencies.

Palm oil may retest a support of 4,018 ringgit per ton, probably after a weak bounce, according to Reuters’ technical analyst Wang Tao.