CPO futures prices close easier - Business Times

CPO FUTURES
CRUDE palm oil (CPO) futures on Bursa Malaysia Derivatives closed easier yesterday, as investors locked-in gains after the price surged to the highest level since March 2008 in intra-day trading, dealers said. The benchmark April CPO contract went up to as high as RM3,915.

"The market opened higher as weather concerns lingered on floods in several states will affect production. The stronger ringgit also supported profit-taking," a dealer said. He said traders are expected to continue booking profits this week unless any bullish market factor kicks-in.

February 2011 fell RM13 to RM3,910, March 2011 dwindled RM25 to RM3,890, April 2011 eased RM27 to RM3,868 and May 2011 was down RM13 to RM3,832.

RUBBER
THE Malaysian rubber market ended higher yesterday taking its cue from the active performance sentiment in the Tokyo futures market, a dealer said.

However, the local market was still quiet as players are still in the holiday mood, he said.

The stronger ringgit and increasing oil prices supported rubber prices, he added.

At noon yesterday, the Malaysian Rubber Board's official physical price for tyre-grade SMR 20 climbed 27 sen to 1,673.5 sen a kg and latex-in bulk edged up 7.5 sen to 1,030.5 sen a kg.

TIN
THE Kuala Lumpur Tin Market (KLTM) hit another fresh high of US$31,049 (US$1.00 = RM3.05) per tonne yesterday, following strong demand for the metal, mainly from Europe, dealers said.

The tin price on the KLTM surged US$999 from last Wednesday's closing of US$30,050 per tonne. They said the gain was also in line with the firmer London Metal Exchange (LME) price of tin which rose US$1,090 to US$31,250 a tonne last Friday,sparking buying interest on the local market.

The KLTM was closed for the Chinese New Year celebration last Thursday and Friday. At the opening level buyers bid for 190 tonnes while sellers offered 30 tonnes.

Turnover was unchanged at 75 tonnes with the participation of Japanese, European and local traders. Meanwhile, the price differential between the KLTM and LME, narrowed to a premium of US$215 a tonne, against US$310 a tonne previously.