FCPO Related News (Mon, Apr 22)

[ Malaysia April 1-20 Palm Oil Exports 882,469 Tons, Down 4.9% on Month –Intertek ]

SINGAPORE, April 19 (Reuters) - Malaysian palm oil futures slipped on Friday, posting a fourth straight weekly loss, as investors remained cautious in a volatile week that saw a broad sell-off across commodities. Weak economic data from the United States and China raised concerns that slowing global growth could hurt demand, triggering a flight of capital this week from markets such as crude oil and gold. Palm oil has also come under pressure after Malaysia's exports of the edible oil fell for the first 15 days in the month.

The benchmark July contract on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange lost 0.6 percent to close at 2,294 ringgit ($756) per tonne. Prices fell to as low as 2,265 ringgit on Thursday, a level last seen on Dec. 14. For the week, prices posted a 2.2 percent loss. Total traded volumes stood at 21,308 lots of 25 tonnes each, lower than the average of 35,000 lots seen so far this year. Technical analysis showed palm oil is expected to revisit its Thursday low of 2,265 ringgit per tonne, as it may have completed a rebound from this level, Reuters market analyst Wang Tao said.  Palm oil shipments from Malaysia, the world's second-largest producer, fell 4 percent and 7.2 percent according to cargo surveyors Intertek Testing Services and Societe Generale de Surveillance, respectively.

Producers are counting on higher export demand to eat into stocks and support prices. Inventory fell to 2.17 million tonnes in March and could fall below the psychological 2-million-tonne mark this month if exports stay firm. In other markets, oil prices climbed towards $100 a barrel on Friday, recovering some ground after a steep six-day fall, although worries about lower global demand and oversupply kept a lid on the rebound.  In other vegetable oil markets, U.S. soyoil for July delivery edged down 0.4 percent in late Asian trade. The most-active September soybean oil contract on the Dalian Commodities Exchange edged up 0.3 percent.

Today’s Support and Resistance for FCPO benchmark July contract is located around 2,250 and 2,300 respectively.