Malaysian palm oil futures traded higher on Friday ahead of the release of official data for September, charting a fourth straight day of gains and finishing the week stronger after two consecutive weeks of decline. The benchmark palm oil contract for December delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange was up 0.4 percent at 2,730 ringgit ($644.48) a tonne at the close of trade.
The contract has gained 1.3 percent this week, hitting a one-week high on Thursday. Traded volumes stood at 42,505 lots of 25 tonnes each on Friday evening. "Palm was supported by lower-than-expected production," said a futures trader from Kuala Lumpur.
Another trader had earlier said the market was quiet and lacked direction pending the release of monthly data from the Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB). "Exports, however, were seen strong... And production is not coming up as fast as expected," he added.
A Reuters poll showed September end-stocks likely rose 3.2 percent from a month earlier to 2 million tonnes, their highest since February 2016. Output is seen rising to 1.84 million tonnes, the strongest in nearly two years, while exports are forecast to gain 7.8 percent to 1.60 million tonnes.
In other related edible oils, the December soyabean oil contract on the Chicago Board of Trade was last up 0.1 percent. China's markets are closed this week for holidays. Palm oil prices are affected by the performance of related edible oils including soya, as they compete for a share of the global vegetable oils market. Palm oil may pull back to a support at 2,694 ringgit per tonne before retesting a resistance at 2,737 ringgit, according to Reuters market analyst for commodities and energy technicals Wang Tao.