Trader's Comment: Palm oil futures fell broadly lower amid weaker Asian time global vegeoil.

Palm oil futures fell broadly lower amid weaker Asian time global vegeoil. Benchmark Mar09 merely hit the intra day high of 1569 after opened RM20 lower at 1568 following overnight NYMEX crude oil dropped to below $40 level again. It then fell to 1557 but managed to support as it hovered between 1560-1565 level through out the whole morning session. However, inadequate follow through buying activities saw CPO prices began to sell down after second session resumed trading. Lower eCBOT soy oil and Dalian palm coupled with further drop of Asian time crude oil sent Benchmark Mar09 continue to fall and settled at intra day low of 1530. Market tone was not as firm as yesterday due to position squaring ahead of the coming holiday season.

Updated CPO Tender Summary and Delivery Location for the year 2008

Announcement: Closure of Bursa

Bursa Malaysia will be closed on the following dates in conjunction with:-

Christmas Day, 25th December 2008 (Thursday)
Awal Muharram, 29th December 2008 (Monday)
New Year, 1st Jan 2009 (Thursday)

We wish all our clients and associates Merry Christmas & Happy New Year.

Breaking News-RTRS-UPDATE 1-Argentina offers farmers tax breaks, but not on soy

BUENOS AIRES, Dec 22 (Reuters) - President Cristina Fernandez announced tax cuts on Monday to help the country's farm sector weather the global economic downturn, but kept levies on Argentina's biggest agricultural export, soy, unchanged.

FCPO Daily: bored

Market looks bored as prices remains in sideways move with stuck in the range of 1500 to 1600 level. We now look for the immediate support at 1569-1548 (gap left over yesterday) followed by 1509. For upside, resistance is at 1630-1635.

FKLI Daily: disappointed bull

Disappointed bull following market gave up all its early gains to end lower. Looks market is facing tough resistance at 897.5-900 mark. For downside, support is at 869.5-865.

KLSE Daily: Santa taking break?

Santa looks taking a break after the last week rally. We maintain our view on sideways to little bias upside potential in near term market. For now, look for the resistance at 888. Downside support is pegged at 868-867.

DJI Daily: looks tiredness

Market looks tiredness after few attempts failed to break through 9000 mark. We now look for the support and resistance at 8118-8140 and 8950-9000 level respectively.

Trader's Highlight

DJI-NEW YORK, Dec 22 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks slid on Monday on more evidence the year-long recession will keep eating into corporate profits, while retailers tumbled on worry the holiday shopping season could be the worst in nearly 40 years.

The Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> fell 59.42 points, or 0.69 percent, to 8,519.69. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.SPX> was down 16.25 points, or 1.83 percent, at 871.63. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.IXIC> gave up 31.97 points, or 2.04
percent, at 1,532.35.

NYMEX-NEW YORK, Dec 22 (Reuters) - U.S. crude oil futures fell nearly 6 percent on Monday, slumping on demand concerns as the February contract took over as front-month following January's Friday expiration at the lowest settlement in over four years. On the New York Mercantile Exchange, February crude fell $2.45, or 5.78 percent, to settle at $39.91 a barrel, trading from $39.74 a contract low, to $43.44.

January crude expired on Friday at $33.87 a barrel, the lowest settlement for front-month crude since Feb. 10, 2004, when it ended at the same level. It fell to $32.40 intraday -- lowest since $32.25 struck Feb. 9, 2004.

CBOT-SOYBEANS - January up 18-1/4 cents at $8.86-1/2 a bushel. Rallied as traders unwound corn/soy spreads put on earlier. Strong U.S. cash markets as farmer sales not keeping up with export program out of the U.S. Gulf added support along with dryness in parts of South America.

U.S. Census Bureau to issue its monthly crush data on Tuesday. Analysts were expecting November soybean crushings between 145.5 and 146.5 million bushels.

CBOT-SOYOIL - January up 0.34 cent at 30.94 cents per lb. Following soybeans higher.

FCPO-KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 22 (Reuters) - Malaysian crude palm oil futures rose 3.4 percent on Monday as crude oil earlier clawed back some of its losses, lifting vegetable oil markets from China to the United States.

The benchmark March 2009 settled up 52 ringgit at 1,588 ringgit ($456.3) per tonne. Other traded months rose between 22 and 61 ringgit in overall traded volume of 8,003 lots of 25 tonnes each.

REGIONAL EQUITIES-BANGKOK, Dec 22 (Reuters) - Most Southeast Asian stocks fell on Monday despite a bailout for U.S. auto makers, although trading was generally quiet due to the looming year-end holidays.

In a week shortened by the Christmas holiday and amid lacklustre trade, Singapore <.FTSTI> ended down 2.78 percent, Thailand <.SETI> shed 2.89 percent, and Malaysia <.KLSE> eased 0.34 percent.

The Philippines <.PSI> touched a 4-week low before closing down 3.3 percent, Indonesia <.JKSE> dropped 0.22 percent, but Vietnam <.VNI>, Southeast Asia's worst performing market, ended 0.9 percent higher.