KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 15: Malaysian crude palm oil futures tumbled 4.1 per cent on Thursday as investors cut some positions on slowing shipments and weak global soyoil markets.

Prices for palm oil, used in biscuits to biofuels, have climbed 36 per cent from an Oct. 28 low of 1,331 ringgit on falling stocks but have failed to break above the 2,000 ringgit level due to weaker exports and volatile external markets.

There seems to be an end to that one month of good exports, buying interest is slowly drying up thanks to the recession and vegetable oil markets around the world are not safe from that, said a trader with a local commodities brokerage.

The benchmark March contract on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange settled down 78 ringgit at 1,806 Malaysian ringgit ($502.8) a ton.

Other traded months fell between 45 and 83 ringgit . Overall trade stood at 10,935 lots of 25 tons each.

Exports of Malaysian palm oil products for Jan. 1-15 fell 33 per cent to 578,282 tons from 868,629 tons shipped Dec. 1-15, cargo surveyor Intertek Testing Services said.

Pakistan has embarked on a palm oil buying spree in the first quarter of 2009, with shipments expected to surge 40 per cent to 350,000 tons as traders exploit cheap prices to make up for poor domestic oilseed output, a top industry official said.

In Indonesia, the world’s largest palm oil producer, the state marketing centre said it sold 3,500 tons of crude palm oil out of 5,500 tons it offered, at a top price of 6,216 rupiah ($0.56) per kg against 6,329 rupiah per kg on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, refiners in Jakarta sold refined, bleached, deodorised (RBD) palm oil, used as cooking oil, at 6,650-6,700 rupiah per kg against 6,750 rupiah per kg on Wednesday.

In Malaysia’s physical market, palm oil for January delivery was called at 1,810 and 1,830 ringgit per ton in the southern region. No trades were called by the end of the afternoon trading session.—Reuters