KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian palm oil futures fell to their lowest levels in two weeks, dropping for a third session in four as stockpiles remained high and exports came in weaker than forecast.
The benchmark palm oil contract for June delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange was down 0.9 percent at 2,142 ringgit ($521.42) a tonne at the close, its sharpest daily decline in three sessions.
It earlier fell to an intraday low of 2,140 ringgit, its weakest level since April 2.
The market fell 2.8 percent last week, but is up 1.7 percent so far for the month.
"Stocks still look high," said a Kuala Lumpur-based trader, adding that inventory levels could still rise in April if exports slow.
Data from the Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB) showed March end-stocks dropped 4.6 percent to 2.92 million tonnes from February.
Another futures trader in Kuala Lumpur added that the market saw further declines in the second half of trade on weaker than expected export growth.
Malaysian palm oil shipments for the first half of April rose 1.5 percent from the corresponding period last month, according to independent inspection company AmSpec Agri Malaysia on Monday.
Another cargo surveyor, Intertek Testing Services, reported on Monday a 5.1 percent rise for the same time period, while Societe Generale de Surveillance said exports rose by 6.7 percent.
Palm oil looks neutral in a narrow range of 2,155-2,177 ringgit per tonne, said Wang Tao, a Reuters market analyst for commodities and energy technicals.
In other related oils, the Chicago May soybean oil contract was down 0.2 percent, and the May soyoil contract on the Dalian Commodity Exchange fell 0.1 percent.
The Dalian May palm oil contract declined 0.2 percent.
Palm oil prices are affected by movements in soyoil, as they compete for a share in the global vegetable oil market.
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