NEW DELHI: Malaysian palm oil futures rose on Wednesday, a day after Brazil decided to raise its mandatory bio-diesel mix into diesel. The benchmark palm oil contract for March delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange gained 20 ringgit or 0.51%, to 3,775 ringgit ($810.61).

It had risen 0.3% on Tuesday. Brazil’s energy policy council CNPE on Tuesday decided to raise the country’s mandatory bio-diesel mix into diesel from early next year, bringing forward previously set blending targets. The move could cut Brazil’s soyaoil exports and that would raise the demand for palm oil, said Anilkumar Bagani, research head of Mumbai-based vegetable oils broker Sunvin Group.

Prices were supported by the announcement that Argentina would seek to hike export taxes for soyabean oil and meal. Palm oil and soyaoil compete for a part of the global market share. Malaysia’s palm oil stocks at the end of November fell for the first time in seven months as production slumped more than exports, data from the industry regulator showed last week.

Indonesia, the world’s biggest palm oil producer, exported 3 million metric tons of palm oil products in October, down 31% from last year, data from the Indonesian Palm Oil Association (GAPKI) showed on Tuesday.