Malaysian palm oil futures rebounded on Tuesday from a three-day low to chart their strongest daily gain in a week, tracking stronger soyaoil prices and supported by forecasts of weaker output. Benchmark palm oil futures for June delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange rose 1 percent to 2,809 ringgit ($635) a tonne at the end of the trading day, the biggest daily gain since March 15.
The contract earlier fell to an intraday low of 2,754 ringgit, its lowest in three days. Traded volumes stood at 49,508 lots of 25 tonnes each on Tuesday evening. The market rose due to forecasts of weaker output and supportive soyaoil on the Chicago Board of Trade, said a futures trader from Kuala Lumpur. Malaysian output fell 1.4 percent in February from January, while end-stocks declined 5.3 percent to 1.46 million tonnes.
Palm was earlier trading in a range and was down at the midday break as related edible oils weakened and demand slowed. Palm oil exports from Malaysia, the world's second largest producer of the tropical oil, fell between March 1-20 compared with the same period a month ago. Cargo surveyor Intertek Testing Services reported a 3 percent drop, while Societe Generale de Surveillance saw a 7.9 percent decline. Palm also tracks the movement of other related vegetable oils, as they compete for a share in the global edible oils market.
Soyabean oil on the Chicago Board of Trade was up 0.5 percent, while the September soyabean oil contract on the Dalian Commodity Exchange fell 0.2 percent. The September contract for palm olein on the Dalian Commodity Exchange was up 0.1 percent. Palm oil remained within a range of 2,767-2,810 ringgit per tonne, said Wang Tao, a Reuters market analyst for commodities and energy technicals.