Palm oil down on technical selling

ROTTERDAM: Palm oil on the European vegetable oil market eased on Friday because of a stronger dollar and investors liquidating palm oil futures ahead of an industry meeting due next week where bearish views are expected to emerge.

"Speculators are liquidating long palm oil positions ahead of the Price Outlook conference, caution about February MPOB palm oil stocks, which could rise again following poor exports last month and USDA crop and supply/demand data at the end of next week, which could also turn out bearish. Buyers on the cash market selected some bargains in an otherwise quiet trade," one broker said.

Palm oil was offered between $5 and $12.50 a tonne down from Thursday after Malaysian palm oil futures closed between 25 and 36 ringgit per tonne down on technical selling on worries over palm oil stocks and expectations that market analysts will produce bearish comments during the Price Outlook.

April/June RBD palm olein traded $7.50 down from Thursday between $811 and $807.50, July/Sept fetched between $812.50 and $810, also down $7.50, Oct/Dec changed hands between $820 and $812.50, down $7.50 and Jan/March traded unchanged at $827.50.

At 1700 GMT CBOT soyoil futures were between 0.16 and 0.34 cents per lb down on increased estimates for the Brazilian soybean crop and weakness in mineral oil values.

EU soyoil was offered three euros up from Thursday on the back of a stronger dollar, which underpins euro-priced products, but buyers showed little interest. EU rapeoil was quoted seven to eight euros down following weakness in mineral oil, lower CBOT soyoil and easier rapeseed futures, which eased with Chicago soybeans on growing world oilseed stocks.

May/July EU rapeoil traded 10 euros per tonne down from Thursday at between 891 and 886 euros a tonne fob exmill and Aug/Oct changed hands between 875 and 870 euros fob.

Coconut oil was offered between unchanged and $10 a tonne up from Thursday on improved demand after April/May changed hands at $835 a tonne cif Rotterdam and May/June traded at $855. Palmkernel oil remained untraded despite sellers lowering asking prices as much as $10 from Thursday in sympathy with weakness in palm oil.