KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian palm oil futures fell more than 1% on Monday, heading for a fifth session of drop in six, as cheaper rival Dalian oils and weak exports weighed on the market.
The benchmark palm oil contract for November delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange slid 48 ringgit, or 1.13%, to 4,217 ringgit ($997.40) a tonne in early trade.
FUNDAMENTALS
Malaysia's palm oil exports during Aug. 1-20 fell 11.53% to 781,291 tonnes from the month before, cargo surveyor Intertek said on Friday.
Dalian's most-active soyoil contract fell 0.7%, while its palm oil contract eased 0.7%. Soyoil prices on the Chicago Board of Trade were up 1.2%.
Palm oil is affected by price movements in related oils as they compete for a share in the global vegetable oils market.
Palm oil may drop to 4,125 ringgit per tonne and stabilise around this level thereafter, Reuters technical analyst Wang Tao said.
MARKET NEWS
Asian share markets were trying to pick up the pieces following last week's thrashing as coronavirus concerns showed little sign of abating, while safe-haven flows benefited the dollar ahead of a key update on US monetary policy.
Oil prices reversed out of a seven-day losing stretch as investors punted on crude at bargain levels, though lingering fears over how a surge in global COVID-19 cases might affect fuel demand combined with a firmer US dollar to limit gains.