(Bloomberg) – Palm oil climbed for the first time in four days after the Malaysian currency weakened to an eight-week low against the U.S. dollar, boosting the appeal of ringgit-denominated futures.
The contract for delivery in February advanced 0.7 percent to close at 2,639 ringgit ($816) a metric ton on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives . Futures rallied to 2,692 ringgit on Nov. 22, the highest level since September 2012, and extended the advance to 8.2 percent this year.
The ringgit touched fell to 3.2324 per dollar in intraday trading today, the weakest since Oct. 2, after signs of a recovery in the U.S. housing market bolstered the case for the Federal Reserve to scale back stimulus that’s spurred gains in emerging-market assets.
“There has been some underlying strength on the back of the ringgit’s weakness,” said Gnanasekar Thiagarajan, a director with Commtrendz Risk Management Services. “For importers, their pricing will go down as the ringgit weakens.”
Investors are awaiting price forecasts from an industry conference in Bandung, Indonesia, starting tomorrow, said Chandran Sinnasamy, head of trading at LT International Futures Sdn.
Soybean oil for January delivery gained 0.5 percent to 40.82 cents a pound on the Chicago Board of Trade, paring losses this year to 18 percent. Soybeans climbed 0.6 percent to $13.37 a bushel.
Refined palm oil for May delivery advanced 0.3 percent to close at 6,314 yuan ($1,036) a ton on the Dalian Commodity Exchange. Soybean oil rose 0.4 percent to end at 7,250 yuan.
