KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian palm oil futures extended gains for a fourth session on Thursday, hitting their highest in over eight years, on concerns over lower production estimates for this month.

The benchmark palm oil contract for January delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange closed 49 ringgit, or 1.5%, higher at 3,395 ringgit ($822.43) a tonne, its highest closing level since May 2, 2012.

Palm rose nearly 3% on Wednesday after the Southern Palm Oil Millers Association estimated production during Nov. 1-10 fell 12% from the prior month, according to traders. This added to concerns after data from the Malaysian Palm Oil Board on Tuesday showed October production fell 7.8% from the previous month to 1.72 million tonnes, its lowest since May. Indonesia exported 2.76 million tonnes of palm oil and its products, such as oleochemicals, in September, are down 15% from the same month last year, data from Indonesian Palm Oil Association showed. Dalian’s most-active soyaoil contract fell 0.2%, while its palm oil contract was up 0.6%—Reuters