Palm rises on stronger rivals, crude oil
A worker cuts down an oil palm bunch during the harvesting process from an old oil palm tree at a plantation in Pontian, Malaysia May 14, 2025. REUTERS/Hasnoor Hussain
KUALA LUMPUR, July 8 : Malaysian palm oil futures climbed on Wednesday, tracking gains in rival edible oils and as crude oil prices rose on fresh U.S.-Iran tensions.
The benchmark palm oil contract for September delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange gained 21 ringgit, or 0.46 per cent, to 4,568 ringgit ($1,122.36) a metric ton by the midday break. The contract slipped 0.07 per cent on Tuesday.
In line with the Chicago and Dalian markets, buying interest has emerged in Kuala Lumpur and is further helped by tensions in the Middle East, said Paramalingam Supramaniam, director at brokerage Pelindung Bestari.
Demand for palm oil is yet to show signs of recovery, while position squaring ahead of the Malaysian Palm Oil Board report on supply and demand also weighed on the market, he said.
Dalian's most-active soyoil contract rose 0.96 per cent, while its palm oil contract climbed 0.78 per cent. Soyoil prices on the Chicago Board of Trade rose 1.43 per cent.
Palm oil tracks the price movements of rival edible oils, as it competes for a share of the global vegetable oils market.
Oil prices gained more than 2 per cent after the U.S. military launched airstrikes against Iran and reimposed crude sales sanctions, raising fears their fragile truce was unravelling and Middle East supplies could be disrupted again.
Stronger crude oil futures make palm a more attractive option for biodiesel feedstock.
The ringgit, palm's currency of trade, weakened 0.07 per cent against the dollar, making the commodity slightly cheaper for buyers holding foreign currencies.
European Union soybean imports reached 14.1 million metric tons in the 2025/26 season that ended on June 30, down 3 per cent from 2024/25, while palm oil imports fell 4 per cent to 2.9 million tons, European Commission data showed.
Palm oil may retest a resistance at 4,592 ringgit per ton, as it has managed to stay within a rising channel, Reuters technical analyst Wang Tao said.
($1 = 4.0700 ringgit)
