CPO futures end lower on lack of buying interest

CRUDE palm oil (CPO) futures on Bursa Malaysia Derivatives closed lower yesterday on lack of strong buying interest, dealers said.

They said lower crude oil and soyaoil prices also weighed down the buying momentum.

"Some players stayed on the sidelines awaiting fresh news on the direction of palm oil exports," a dealer said.

"The market closed lower as bearish underlying fundamentals kept a lid on upside movement (and) weak crude oil laid the ground for speculative selling," said a trader at a local brokerage.

Cargo surveyors Intertek Testing Services (ITS) and Societe Generale de Surveillance (SGS), will unveil Malaysia's palm oil export figures for March 1-25 today.

At close, April 2010 fell RM32 to RM2,612 per tonne, May 2010 declined RM33 to RM2,577, June 2010 eased RM31 to RM2,560 and July 2010 slipped RM34 to RM2,546.

Turnover, however, increased to 13,662 lots from 11,742 lots on Tuesday and open interests declined to 77,953 contracts from 78,158 contracts previously.

On the physical market, April South declined to RM2,610 per tonne from the RM2,650 per tonne yesterday.

RUBBER

THE Malaysian rubber market closed lower yesterday in quiet trading, dealers said.

Dealers said players stayed on the sidelines awaiting a drop in prices.

“The market undertone is still firm, supported by tight supply, as rubber production in major producing countries has been falling due to the continued dry weather,” a dealer said.

At noon, the Malaysia Rubber Board’s official physical price for tyre-grade SMR 20 ended 3 sen lower at 1,034.0 sen per kg and latex-in-bulk slipped two sen to 733.0 sen per kg.

The unofficial closing price for tyre-grade SMR 20 and latex-in-bulk shed 1 sen each to 1,033.5 sen per kg and 733.5 sen per kg respectively.

TIN

THE tin price on the Kuala Lumpur Tin Market (KLTM) closed lower yesterday by US$100 (US$1.00 = RM3.34) to settle at US$17,500 per tonne on a technical correction, dealers said.

The dealers said there was only scattered buying after Tuesday record high of US$17,600, as the market participants were cautious.

The tin price on the London Metal Exchange (LME), however, rose by US$40 to US$17,600 per tonne. On the local front, bids totalled 45 tonnes against offers of 100 tonnes.

Yesterday's turnover declined to 61 tonnes from 75 tonnes on Tuesday, with the participation of Japanese, European and local traders.

The price differential between the KLTM and the LME narrowed to US$255 per tonne from the US$395 per tonne on Tuesday. - Agencies