JAKARTA: Malaysian palm oil futures dropped on Friday after four days of gains as profit-booking and a stronger ringgit weighed on prices, although the benchmark contract post a weekly rise amid output concerns.
The benchmark palm oil contract for June delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange fell 0.79% to end at 3,758 ringgit ($852.15), erasing some of the 7.67% gains over the past four days.
The contract posted a 7% gain for the week, but lost 9.27% for the month.
Palm dropped on Friday on “weekend profit-taking, and external markets gradually easing, coupled with a firmer ringgit,” a Kuala Lumpur-based trader said.
Higher exports cushioned the drop, the trader added.
Exports of Malaysian palm oil products for March rose 32.0% from February, independent inspection company AmSpec Agri Malaysia said on Friday, while cargo surveyor Intertek Testing Services reported a 24% increase.
Meanwhile, Malaysia’s palm oil output is expected to decline after a miller’s association estimated a 22.9% decline in output from March 1-25, analysts said.
Dalian’s most-active soyoil contract was trading 0.92% higher, after gaining as much as 2.06% earlier in the session, while its palm oil contract rose 0.72%. Soyoil prices on the Chicago Board of Trade gained 0.42%.
Palm oil is affected by price movements in related oils as they compete for a share in the global vegetable oils market.
Malaysian ringgit gained 0.23% against the US dollar on Friday. A stronger ringgit, in which the palm contract is traded, could make it more expensive for holders of dollar.
Palm oil may extend gains to 3,853 ringgit per tonne, to complete a bounce from 3,500 ringgit, Reuters technical analyst Wang Tao said.
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