KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian palm oil futures were little changed on Thursday, hovering around three-week lows hit in the previous session due to weak demand.

The benchmark palm oil contract for March delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange slipped 1 ringgit, or 0.03%, to 3,910 ringgit ($895.97) a tonne by the midday break.

Exports of Malaysian palm oil products for Jan. 1-10 fell 44.6% to 262,201 tonnes from Dec. 1-10, cargo surveyor Societe Generale de Surveillance said on Wednesday.

Palm oil stocks in the world’s second-largest producer are expected to decline to around 2 million tonnes this year, compared with 2.19 million tonnes in 2022, the Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB) said on Thursday.

MPOB forecast crude palm oil prices to trade in a range of between 4,000-4,200 ringgit per tonne this year.

India will halt duty-free imports of crude soyoil from April 1, the government said on Wednesday, as the world’s biggest importer of vegetable oils tries to support local oilseed farmers.

Indonesia planned to set its crude palm oil reference price at $920.57 per tonne for Jan. 16-31, up from $858.96 per tonne in Jan.

1-15, deputy coordinating minister of economic affairs Musdhalifah Machmud said on Wednesday. Dalian’s most-active soyoil contract rose 0.2%, while its palm oil contract fell 0.7%.

Palm oil tumbles more than 3pc as exports plunge

Soyoil prices on the Chicago Board of Trade were up 0.4%. Malaysia called on countries producing palm oil to strengthen cooperation following new European Union (EU) legislation aimed at curbing the imports for commodities linked to deforestation, including palm oil.

Deputy Prime Minister Fadillah Yusof said Malaysia, which sees EU measures as “trade barriers”, plans to engage with EU counterparts and will consider halting exports to the bloc as an option.