Palm tumbles as lower exports hit sentiment

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian palm oil futures fell on Wednesday, charting a fifth straight session of declines, as poor exports data kept the market subdued.

The benchmark palm oil contract on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange was down 0.8% at 1,966 ringgit  ($474.31) per tonne at the close.

It earlier fell to its lowest since Nov. 27.

Exports data from Tuesday continued to weigh on traders' mood, a Kuala Lumpur-based trader said.

"Sentiment has been dampened by poor export figures and technical selling," the trader said, adding the market had no other fresh factors to respond to.

On Tuesday, cargo surveyors Societe Generale de Surveillance and Intertek Testing Services said exports of Malaysian palm oil products for June 1-25 fell 15.3% and 17.8% month-on-month, respectively.

Independent inspection company AmSpec Agri Malaysia said exports fell 14% month-on-month for the same period.

The most-active Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) soyoil futures , which was down for most of the session, weighing on  palm, was last up 0.1%, while China's Dalian soybean oil prices for the September contract fell 0.5%.

Palm oil prices are affected by movements in related edible oils, with which it competes for global market share. The Dalian September palm oil contract was down 0.9%.

Palm oil is biased to break a support at 1,971 ringgit per tonne and fall towards 1,929 ringgit, Wang Tao, a Reuters analyst for commodities technicals said.

The support is provided by the 86.4% projection level of a downward wave C from 2,235 ringgit. It is further protected by two other supports at 1,964 ringgit and 1,960 ringgit, respectively the June 12 low and the May 13 low, Tao added.