SINGAPORE: Malaysian palm oil futures jumped 1.5% on Tuesday, tracking gains in rival oils on the Dalian Commodity Exchange and Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT).

The benchmark palm oil contract for March delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange rose 50 ringgit to 3,456 ringgit ($853.33) in early trade. The contract had ended 1.1% lower on Monday.

"External markets are improving," a Kuala Lumpur-based trader told Reuters.

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

Soyoil on the CBOT rallied overnight to reach six-and-a-half-year highs, as prolonged worker strikes and dry weather in Argentina squeezed global supply prospects.

It was last up 0.9%.

Meanwhile, soy and palm oils on the Dalian Commodity Exchange rose 0.5% and 1.2% respectively.

Palm oil may test a support zone of 3,348-3,381 ringgit per tonne, a break below which could cause a fall to 3,300 ringgit, Reuters analyst Wang Tao said.