(Dec 1): Palm oil steadied after advancing the past three sessions, with robust Malaysian inventories poised to cap further gains.

The country’s high stockpiles are expected to weigh on sentiment, said David Ng, a senior trader at IcebergX Sdn Bhd in Kuala Lumpur. Parts of Malaysia have been inundated with heavy rain and widespread flooding, but Ng said it’s too early to determine how the weather will impact production.

Futures in Kuala Lumpur have tracked rival soybean oil higher, and the broader market was buoyed on Friday by US confirmation of more American soybean sales to China, following a thawing of trade tensions.

Prices:

• Palm for February delivery on Bursa Malaysia Derivatives was little changed at RM4,119/tonne as of the midday break; -7.4% year to date.
• Soybean oil for January in Chicago -0.2% to 51.95c/lb.
• Refined palm oil for January on Dalian Commodity Exchange +0.3% to 8,648 yuan/tonne.
• Soybean oil for January +0.5% to 8,282 yuan/tonne.
• Soybean oil’s premium over palm ~US$148/tonne vs average of US$76 in past year; data compiled by Bloomberg.
• Gasoil oil’s premium over gasoil ~US$308/tonne vs average of US$314 in past year; data compiled by Bloomberg.

Source: The Edge Malaysia