Lang
Crude palm oil prices on Bursa Malaysia Derivatives are expected to trade lower next week, pressured by higher inventory levels and profit-taking.
Jim Teh, senior palm oil trader at Interband Group of Companies, said data from the Malaysian Palm Oil Board showed Malaysia’s palm oil stocks reached 2.3 million tonnes in April, higher than the previous month.
He told Bernama that the higher stock position is expected to push crude palm oil prices into a bearish trend next week as traders take profits. Prices are likely to move between RM4,200 and RM4,350 per tonne.
Teh added that market speculators may also take advantage of current geopolitical tensions involving the United States, Iran and Israel. He said physical demand is expected to come from major importing countries such as China, India, Pakistan and several Middle Eastern countries as they continue rebuilding inventories.
He noted that the palm oil industries in Malaysia and Indonesia remain profitable overall, with crude palm oil production costs in Malaysia at around RM3,000 per tonne, while production costs in Indonesia are lower.
However, David Ng, a trader at Iceberg X, said crude palm oil prices could trade with a slightly bullish bias, supported by recent strength in crude oil prices. He said higher crude oil prices have lifted palm oil because the commodity is widely used as a feedstock for biofuel. He expects the market to trade between RM4,300 and RM4,480.
At the time of the report, Brent crude oil was up 2.49% at US$108.30 per barrel.
On a weekly Friday-to-Friday basis, the May 2026 contract fell RM98 to RM4,380 per tonne. June 2026 declined RM82 to RM4,390, while July 2026 dropped RM85 to RM4,420 per tonne.
August 2026 fell RM84 to RM4,437 per tonne, September 2026 declined RM77 to RM4,449, and October 2026 lost RM67 to RM4,465 per tonne.
Weekly trading volume rose to 493,990 contracts from 435,410 in the previous week, while open interest increased to 285,554 contracts from 281,027 previously. The physical crude palm oil price for May in the southern region fell RM190 to RM4,440 per tonne.
Source: Bernama
