Trader's Comment: Palm oil futures ended RM59 lower after recovered some of its earlier losses

Palm oil futures ended RM59 lower after recovered some of its earlier more than 5 % losses. Benchmark Jan09 initially open RM56 lower at 1483 following overnight NYMEX crude oil which settled more than $3 lower, coupled with lower CBOT soy complex. CPO then immediately tumbled down to hit intra day low of 1435 during the afternoon session, as NYMEX crude oil trade below $55 a barrel (which is also a 22-month low) at Asian time zone. ECBOT and Dalian palm also follow suit. Nevertheless, CPO prices encountered strong short covering activities in the later part of 2nd session. Benchmark Jan09 rebounded sharply but failed to reach today’s left over gap. It hit the intra day high at 1496 before it settled at 1480, as traders began to speculate on the decision of OPEC members to cut output by year-end.