Palm oil falls on weak exports, dissipating output concerns

Malaysian palm oil futures fell on Monday, snapping three session of gains as concerns around Indonesian output eased and weak export data weighed down the contract. The benchmark palm oil contract for February delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange closed down 5 ringgit, or 0.51%, at 4,093 ringgit ($991.76) a metric ton. The contract pared earlier gains after Indonesia’s largest palm oil association GAPKI said it saw no major impact yet on palm oil production due to devastating floods on the island of Sumatra, a Kuala Lumpur-based trader said. Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand faced large-scale devastation after a rare tropical storm formed in the Malacca Strait, fuelling heavy rains and wind last week. Rescue and relief officials in Southeast Asian countries were still trying to get access to many flood-hit areas on Sunday, even as flood waters receded and tens of thousands of people were evacuated across the three countries. Exports of Malaysian palm oil products ...