By Durratul Ain Ahmad Fuad

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 9 (Bernama) -- Crude palm oil (CPO) futures contract on Bursa Malaysia Derivatives ended higher today, tracking gains on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT), a dealer said.

Nonetheless, the market is pressured by expectations of higher output and stock level ahead of the key crop reports by the Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB) scheduled to be released on Aug 10, palm oil trader David Ng said.

“We have located the support level at RM3,700 a tonne, and resistance at RM4,300 a tonne,” he told Bernama. 

Meanwhile, Mumbai-based Sunvin Group commodity research head Anilkumar Bagani said the market is now cautious ahead of MPOB monthly supply and demand data, with the focus on Malaysian palm oil end-July  stocks and production.

“Market is estimating the end-July stocks to rise to 1.77-1.82 million tonnes from 1.655 million tonnes in June, and 1.498 million tonnes in July 2021.

“For the Aug 1-5 period, Southern Peninsula Palm Oil Millers’ Association (SPPOMA) has estimated South Peninsular mills palm oil production to increase 7.74 per cent over the July 1-5 period, while Intertek Testing Services (ITS) has estimated palm oil export for the period at 211,530 tonnes, up by 21.45 per cent over the July 1-5 period,” he said.

At the close, the CPO futures contract for spot month August 2022 gained RM35 to RM4,170 a tonne, September 2022 appreciated RM47 to RM4,135 a tonne, and October 2022 inched up RM48 to RM4,119 a tonne. 

Meanwhile, November 2022 and December 2022 both rose RM53 to RM4,122 a tonne, and RM4,146 a tonne, respectively, and January 2023 climbed by RM34 to RM4,176 a tonne. 

Total volume expanded to 59,291 lots from 48,345 lots on Monday, while open interest improved to 251,987 from 243,140 contracts previously.

The physical CPO price for August South increased by RM50 to RM4,200 a tonne.

-- BERNAMA