By Durratul Ain Ahmad Fuad

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 25 (Bernama) -- The crude palm oil (CPO) futures contract on Bursa Malaysia Derivatives closed lower today -- the first day after a long holiday break -- as concern over weaker demand continued to put pressure on prices, a dealer said.

 Palm oil trader David Ng said the expectation of a weaker output may, however, provide near-term support. 

“We locate support at RM3,500 and resistance at RM4,000 per tonne,” he told Bernama.

Meanwhile, Mumbai-based Sunvin Group commodity research head Anilkumar Bagani said CPO futures resumed trading after a long holiday sharply lower. The January 2023 palm oil export performance was the main contributor to the fall in palm oil prices.

He said Intertek Testing Services had estimated Malaysian palm oil export for the Jan 1-25 period at 824,373 tonnes, down by 34.68 per cent from 1.26 million tonnes in the same period a month ago.

“The key palm oil production outlook data from UOB Kay Hian and the Southern Malaysian Palm Fruit Manufacturers Association would be crucial (to determine future price action),” he added. 

At the close, February 2023 slipped RM131 to RM3,754 per tonne, March 2023 declined RM133 to RM3,754 per tonne, and April 2023 fell RM139 to RM3,753 per tonne.

May 2023 decreased RM137 to RM3,753 per tonne, June 2023 lost RM132 to RM3,751 per tonne, and July 2023 slid RM117 to RM3,746 per tonne.

Total volume improved to 65,915 lots from 40,902 lots last Friday, while open interest widened to 180,818 contracts from 179,235 contracts previously.

The physical CPO price for February South was RM80 lower at RM3,870 per tonne.

-- BERNAMA