KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian palm oil futures reversed early gains on Thursday, extending losses for a sixth in seven sessions, tracking losses in rival edible oils and further weighed by top producer Indonesia’s move to raise its export volumes.

The benchmark palm oil contract for September delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange fell by 38 ringgit, or 0.68%, to 5,538 ringgit ($1,259.78) a tonne by the midday break, its lowest since April 4.

For the week, palm has declined 6.5% so far.

The world’s top palm oil exporter Indonesia has issued permits for shipment of 602,142 tonnes of the edible oil under its Domestic Market Obligation scheme as of late Wednesday, trade ministry official Oke Nurwan said.

India has reduced the base import prices of crude palm oil, soyoil, gold and silver, the government said late on Wednesday.

Dalian’s most-active soyoil contract fell 1.9%, while its palm oil contract gained 3.4%.

Soyoil prices on the Chicago Board of Trade were down 0.1%.

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

Oil prices recovered from a steep drop in the previous session, supported by tight oil supply and peak summer consumption, after a US rate hike sparked fears of slower economic growth and less fuel demand.

Palm oil may fall towards 5,394 ringgit

Weak crude oil futures make palm a less attractive option for biodiesel feedstock.

Palm oil may fall towards 5,394 ringgit per tonne, to fulfil this ultimate target, Reuters technical analyst Wang Tao said.