MUMBAI: Malaysian palm oil futures rebounded on Monday from their lowest in seven months, following gains in rival soyoil, but an expected rise in output and weak exports capped the upside.
The benchmark palm oil contract on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange closed up 0.31%, or 6 ringgit, at 1,957 ringgit ($473.6) per tonne, after rising to 1,982 ringgit earlier in the day.
On Friday, it fell to its lowest since Nov. 27, at 1,946 ringgit.
In the June quarter, the tropical oil shed 7%, its seventh quarterly drop in a row.
"Palm is taking support from the U.S. and Chinese market," said one Kuala Lumpur-based trader, referring to Monday's move.
Chicago soybean futures rose for a second session on Monday to a one-year high as a thaw in U.S.-China trade relations following talks between the two nations underpinned the market.
U.S. soyoil futures were up 1% on Monday after rising 1.6% on Friday.
Gains in crude oil were also supporting palm oil on Monday, analysts said.
Oil prices were up as OPEC and its allies looked on track to extend supply cuts until at least the end of 2019 at their meeting in Vienna this week.
The rise in palm oil could be temporary as exports are not picking up and production is set to rise in coming months, said another Kuala Lumpur-based trader.
On Friday, cargo surveyor Intertek Testing Services said exports of Malaysian palm oil products for June fell 19.9% to 1,343,428 tonnes from 1,677,639 tonnes shipped during May.
Independent inspection company AmSpec Agri Malaysia said exports fell 19.6% month-on-month for the same period.
Palm oil production typically rises during the third and fourth quarters, and has tended to peak between August and October in recent years.
Palm oil may fall to 1,929 ringgit, as it has broken a support at 1,971 ringgit per tonne, Wang Tao, a Reuters analyst for commodities technicals said on Monday. - Reuters
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