Better-than- Expected Export Forecast Lifts CPO Futures

By Nur Athirah Mohd Shaharuddin

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 27 (Bernama) -- The crude palm oil (CPO) futures contract on Bursa Malaysia Derivatives rebounded to close higher on Friday due to a better-than-expected export forecast.

Palm oil dealer David Ng said the better export forecast helped lift market sentiment. “Earlier, the market expected a double-digit drop in CPO exports, but (the forecast pointed to) only a single-digit decline,” he told Bernama.

Malaysian palm oil exports are forecast to fall between 1.1 and 4.0 per cent from Dec 1-25, 2024.

At the close, the January 2025 contract gained RM75 to RM4,975 per tonne while February 2025 climbed RM83 to RM4,781 and March 2025 rose RM81 to RM4,624.

The April 2025 contract improved by RM61 to RM4,459 per tonne while May 2025 advanced RM37 to RM4,331 and June 2025 gained RM27 to RM4,253.

Trading volume soared to 56,591 lots from 42,211 lots yesterday while open interest advanced to 242,999 contracts from 239,482 contracts previously.

The physical CPO price for January South increased by RM50 to RM5,050 per tonne.

-- BERNAMA