Malaysia palm oil stocks likely to drop to 8-month low in March

Malaysia’s palm oil inventories are expected to have dwindled to the lowest in eight months at the end of March despite increased output as exports rose, a Reuters survey showed on Thursday. Palm oil stocks are seen declining for a fifth consecutive month to 1.79 million metric tons, a 6.65% month-on-month drop, according to the median estimate of 10 traders, planters and analysts polled by Reuters. Meanwhile, shipments are likely to have surged 21.22% to 1.23 million tons in March, driven by demand for Islamic holy month of Ramadan that started in mid-March. “We are seeing an increase in exports in March and we expect the same momentum to continue in April and May,” Paramalingam Supramaniam, director at Selangor-based brokerage Pelindung Bestari, said. In March, crude palm oil (CPO) output in the world’s second biggest palm oil producer was seen rising by 9.76% on a monthly basis to 1.38 million tons, the first increase since November. “El Nino weather forecast ...