Dilip Kumar Jha / Mumbai August 27, 2008

Reflecting the global trend, especially in Malaysia and Indonesia, crude palm oil (CPO) fell 4 per cent both on the Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX) and the National Commodity & Derivatives Exchange (NCDEX).

On MCX, the highest consumed edible oil for its October delivery fell to Rs 362.10 per 10 kg while September contract slumped 3.99 per cent to Rs 363.40 per 10 kg. The spot price of CPO at MCX closed at Rs 391.30 per 10 kg in Kandla.

Surprisingly, the oil remained at Rs 400.35 per 10 kg at NCDEX because of no trade for its September delivery while the spot price closed at Rs 391.90.

CPO in Malaysia dipped 7.3 per cent to close at 2,409 ringgit, a fall of 191 ringgit on fear that Chinese buyers may default. Heavy…

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KUALA LUMPUR: Kuala Lumpur Kepong Bhd, Malaysia’s third-largest listed planter, plans to grow oil palm at 10,000 hectares every year, mostly in Indonesia, to meet global demand for the vegetable oil, a top official said.

Many Malaysian plantation firms venturing into the Indonesian side of Borneo island, have started planting oil palm in the past two years, which could lead to high crude palm oil stocks in coming months. KL Kepong Chief Executive Lee Oi Hian said land acquisitions and planting of oil palms have to be done carefully to avoid encroaching into environmentally sensitive areas like peatlands and rainforests.

“We are concentrating on planting areas in Indonesia at very rapid pace, somewhere around 10,000 hectares a year,” Lee Oi Hian told Reuters in an interview.

“We are concerned about the quality of plantings and making sure its…

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By Manirajan Ramasamy and Feiwen Rong

Aug. 26 (Bloomberg) — Malaysia, the world’s second-largest palm oil producer, may act rapidly should prices of the edible oil extend their decline, Plantation Industries and Commodities Minister Peter Chin Fah Kui said today.

“We might need to take immediate measures” if prices “drop drastically below 2,000 ringgit ($590) a ton,” Chin said in a phone interview. The price tumbled as much as 7.5 percent today to 2,406 ringgit a ton.

Palm oil, used in cooking and as an alternative fuel, has slumped 11 percent in two days as supplies from Malaysia and Indonesia, the top growers, outpaced demand. The price plunged 46 percent from a record in March to a 15-month low in August as tumbling crude oil reduced its attraction as a biofuel. Wilmar International Ltd., the biggest palm oil trader,…

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Business Times

Tuesday, August 26, 2008

CPO FUTURES

BANGKOK: Malaysian crude palm oil futures fell 4.2 per cent yesterday on increasing supply concerns and weaker crude oil prices, dealers said.

The benchmark November crude palm oil contract on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange fell RM115, or 4.2 per cent to finish at RM2,600 (US$770) per tonne. Other traded contract fell between RM42 and RM136 ringgit per tonne. Overall volume stood at 9,733 lots of 25 tonnes each.

“The market is going down on the back of Mistry’s comments which are looking at higher production,” a trader said.

Asia’s high crude palm oil cycle is likely to stretch to October and November due to ideal weather conditions and liberal use of fertiliser, leading industry analyst Dorab Mistry told a conference yesterday.

Mistry, a director with Indian firm Godrej International, said Malaysian crude…

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Business Times

Tuesday, August 26, 2008

KUALA Lumpur Kepong Bhd (KLK), Malaysia’s third largest listed planter, plans to grow oil palm at 10,000ha every year, mostly in Indonesia, chief executive Datuk Seri Lee Oi Hian said yesterday.

He said in an interview that the firm has invested RM200 million in a biodiesel softening plant, which will be commissioned in the second half of 2009. — Reuters

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Business Times

Tuesday, August 26, 2008

CB INDUSTRIAL Product Holding Bhd said its unit has won a RM36.1 million contract to build a floating palm oil mill in Indonesia.

Modipalm Engineering Sdn Bhd won the order from PT TH Indo Plantation to build a mill with a capacity of 30-tonne per hour in Riau, it said in a statement to Bursa Malaysia.

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Business Times

Tuesday, August 26, 2008

By Ooi Tee Ching

THE palm oil price is taking a breather due to a peak harvest season but will resume their rise as demand picks up, industry experts said.

Yesterday, the third month benchmark crude palm oil price on the Malaysian Derivatives Exchange fell RM115 to close at RM2,600 per tonne.

“The market is oversold and I would say we’re in transition. I may be mistaken but I’m convinced the bull run is not yet over. We still have a couple of years more to go,” said Godrej International Ltd director Dorab Mistry.

Changing weather patterns could also affect yields of soyabean in the US and grains in India.

“The US Department of Agriculture had over-estimated August rainfall in the US and there is still a question mark on the soya-bean yield,” he said.

If the…

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Indonesian oil palm ops expected to contribute more

KUALA LUMPUR: Fima Corp Bhd hopes to achieve 25% growth in revenue to RM220mil for the financial year ending March 31 (FY09), backed by higher contribution from its oil palm plantation in Indonesia.

Managing director Roslan Hamir said the company would continue to bank on the production and trading of security and confidential documents as well as its palm oil production to be the main revenue drivers in FY09.

“However, we expect higher quantum of revenue growth from the oil palm division in view of higher fresh fruit bunch production,” he told reporters after the company AGM yesterday.

“We aim to produce at least 25,000 tonnes of crude palm oil (CPO) in FY09 compared with 9,000 tonnes previously,” Roslan said, adding that 80% of its CPO from Indonesia was sent back to…

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by Lim Shie-Lynn

KUALA LUMPUR: The domestic and Southeast Asian biodiesel production could be boosted by more effective policy enforcement and support from governments in the region as the industry is facing a difficult future with costly feedstock and lower crude oil prices, an industry consultant said.

Malaysia and Indonesia recently announced that both countries would cooperate in a biofuel development programme where both would use similar specifications and blending for biodiesel.

Plantation Industries and Commodities Minister Datuk Peter Chin had said the country hoped to sign a memorandum of understanding with Indonesia, which would encourage a palm-based biofuel policy that both countries could use.

While the decision would be positive to the biodiesel sector, Malaysia-based engineering services firm Lurgi Sdn Bhd’s managing director Uwe Zwiefelhofer said: “The problem with biodiesel industry in this region is the…

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By Divine Ntaryike
Douala, Cameroon
25 August 2008

Oil palms are grown throughout West and Central Africa, but the development of the palm oil industry has been slow, despite a thriving market. A project sponsored by the United Nations Industrial Development Organization is about to change the palm oil industry in Cameroon and Nigeria. Voice of America English to Africa Service reporter Divine Nytaryike in Douala, Cameroon says palm oil is a common ingredient in traditional dishes in West and Central Africa. It is cheaper than vegetable oil and can also be used to make soap and pomade.

There are several reasons for the low output: obsolete production equipment, aging plantations and little access to technology and financing. Cameroon produces 160,000 tons of palm oil a year. That’s far below demand, which is expected…

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