Palm closes lowest in 6 months on concerns over rising stocks, weaker rival oils

Malaysian palm oil futures tumbled on Tuesday for a third consecutive session, weighed by weaker rival oils and concerns over rising stocks amid softer exports. The benchmark palm oil contract for March delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange slid 52 ringgit, or 1.3%, to 3,961 ringgit ($969.88) a metric ton, hitting its lowest closing price since June 13. Crude palm oil futures were seen trading lower following overall weakness in the global vegetable oil markets, said Anilkumar Bagani, commodity research head at Sunvin Group, a Mumbai-based brokerage. The persistently weaker Malaysian palm oil export performance has raised the risk of a further increase in palm oil stocks, while the stronger ringgit is adding to market pressure, Bagani added. Dalian’s most-active soyoil contract fell 0.83%, while its palm oil contract CPO1! shed 0.97%. Soyoil prices on the Chicago Board of Trade ZL1! were down 0.99%. Palm oil tracks price movements of rival edible oils, as it competes ...