Palm falls on weaker rival oils

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian palm oil futures slipped on Thursday, falling for a third session in four, as weaker rival edible oils pressured the market.

The benchmark palm oil contract for October delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange slid 13 ringgit, or 0.28%, to 4,651 ringgit ($1,138.56) a metric ton by the midday break.

Crude palm oil futures traded lower, tracking the mild weakness in rival oilseed markets, a Kuala Lumpur-based trader said.

“The benchmark October contract traded in a lackluster manner throughout the morning session, with trading activity remaining below average as market participants stayed cautious,” the trader added. Dalian’s most-active soyoil contract fell 0.32%, while its palm oil contract shed 0.01%.

Soyoil prices on the Chicago Board of Trade were down 0.33%. Palm oil tracks the price movements of rival edible oils, as it competes for a share of the global vegetable oils market.

Oil prices erased some of their previous gains, despite escalating attacks in the Gulf as investor focus shifted to supply flows through the key chokepoints in the region. Weaker crude oil futures make palm a less attractive option for biodiesel feedstock.

The ringgit, palm’s currency of trade, strengthened 0.05% against the dollar, making the commodity slightly more expensive for buyers holding foreign currencies.

Indonesia has raised its palm-oil-based biodiesel allocation for 2026 to 16.75 million kilolitres to meet additional demand from the country’s B50 biodiesel mandate launched earlier this month, an energy ministry document showed.

Palm oil may retrace towards 4,524 ringgit per ton, as it has broken support at 4,675 ringgit and fallen into a triangle, Reuters technical analyst Wang Tao said.