KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian palm oil futures rose on Friday, buoyed by bargain buying and stronger rival edible oils, though weaker export estimates capped gains.
The benchmark palm oil contract for March delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange gained RM82, or 1.8 per cent, to RM4,625 (US$1,035.14) a metric tonne at the close.
The contract gained 4.33 per cent this week, snapping a two-week decline.
Crude palm oil futures were trading higher, supported by bargain buying, a weaker Malaysian ringgit and gains in Chinese vegetable oil futures in Asian hours on the day, Anilkumar Bagani, commodity research head at Sunvin Group, said.
Dalian's most-active soyoil contract climbed 0.78 per cent and its palm oil contract added 0.94 per cent. Soyoil prices on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) rose 0.6 per cent.
Palm oil tracks price movements of rival edible oils as it competes for a share of the global vegetable oils market.
The ringgit, palm's currency of trade, weakened 0.02 per cent against the U.S. dollar, making the commodity cheaper for buyers holding foreign currencies.
"However, the weaker Malaysian palm oil export performance and the absence of fresh demand at the end of the year were seen capping the gains," Bagani said.
Cargo surveyors estimated Malaysian palm oil exports to have fallen 1.1 per cent-4 pr cent between Dec. 1-25 from Nov. 1-25.
Oil rose slightly and was on track for a weekly gain, spurred by expectations of a stimulus-driven economic recovery in China, the world's biggest oil importer, and by forecasts of lower U.S. inventories.
CBOT soybean futures advanced more than 1 per cent on Thursday and soymeal futures touched a two-month high, as worries about dry weather in parts of Argentina prompted speculators to exit short positions, traders said.