CPO FUTURES END HIGHER ON FIRMER SOYBEAN OIL PRICES, EASING US-CHINA TRADE TENSIONS

By Fatin Umairah Abdul Hamid

KUALA LUMPUR, May 13 (Bernama) -- The crude palm oil (CPO) futures contract on Bursa Malaysia Derivatives closed higher on Tuesday, supported by firmer soybean oil prices and easing United States (US)-China trade tensions, said palm oil trader David Ng.

He noted that rising local stockpiles and higher output levels continue to exert downward pressure on CPO prices.

“We see support at RM3,750 per tonne and resistance at RM3,950 per tonne,” he told Bernama.

Fastmarkets Palm Oil Analytics senior analyst Sathia Varqa said CPO futures pared early gains from the first session due to a surge in supply, but later regained momentum to close near mid-day levels.

The market faced selling pressure at the start of the second session after the Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB) reported that April inventories rose to a six-month high.

In its April 2025 industry performance report released today, the Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB) reported that CPO production rose by 21.52 per cent, or 298,531 tonnes, to 1.69 million tonnes from 1.39 million tonnes in March.

Sathia said the increase in April production was widely anticipated, as the palm crop enters its seasonal high-output period in the second quarter. In Malaysia, peak production typically occurs between August and October, while in Indonesia, it falls between September and November.

At the close, May 2025 rose RM37 to RM3,827 per tonne, June 2025 increased RM82 to RM3,895 per tonne, July 2025 went up RM79 to RM3,893 per tonne, August 2025 added RM68 to RM3,895 per tonne, September 2025 gained RM59 to RM3,896 per tonne, and October 2025 climbed RM46 to RM3,899 per tonne.

Trading volume declined to 86,227 lots from 89,661 lots yesterday, while open interest rose to 244,857 contracts from 240,098 contracts previously.

The physical CPO price for May South rose RM50 to RM3,900 per tonne.

-- BERNAMA