Indonesian palm oil eased on Monday, pressured by a softening Malaysian market with players retreating to the sidelines as they wait to see if the downtrend persists in the next few days. The state marketing centre in Jakarta sold crude palm oils at 9,526 rupiah ($1.01) a kg, down from 9,638 rupiah on Thursday.
The centre, which sells palm oil from state plantations, did not hold an auction for the local market on Friday. In North Sumatra's Medan, producers held no auction, as the easing Malaysian market sapped trading interest. "Players are not interested in the market today. Malaysia fell a lot, which made players reluctant to take positions," said a dealer in a plantation firm in Medan, home to Belawan port, the key port for palm oil exports.
Malaysia's benchmark futures contract for crude palm oil edged lower on Monday as a further weakening of export numbers announced by a cargo surveyor weighed on prices. The contract, which hit a new record of 3,420 ringgit on January 14, fell 7 ringgit to 3,309 ringgit ($1,011) a tonne before the lunch break, and settled the day down 73 ringgit at 3,243 ringgit a tonne.