KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 8 (Reuters) - Malaysian palm oil exporters have stopped supplying Iran with most of the 30,000 tonnes of the food staple the Middle Eastern country buys each month, or about half its demand, as Western financial curbs on Tehran stymie payments, two trading sources said.
The halt in Malaysia's palm oil exports to Iran, which the traders said started late last year, is the latest sign that sanctions aimed at persuading Tehran to abandon a suspected nuclear weapons programme have started to bite.
The sanctions, spearheaded by the United States and European Union, have made it difficult for Iranian palm oil buyers to use letters of credit and make payments via middlemen in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to Malaysian exporters.
Malaysia is the world No.2 producer of palm oil, used to make products from bio-diesel to cooking oil. It is a key supplier of Iran's palm oil, along with Indonesia, the world's top producer.
"Most of the companies selling palm oil to Iran have stopped since the end of last year," one trader with direct knowledge of the deals told Reuters on Wednesday.
The halt in Malaysia's palm oil exports to Iran, which the traders said started late last year, is the latest sign that sanctions aimed at persuading Tehran to abandon a suspected nuclear weapons programme have started to bite.
The sanctions, spearheaded by the United States and European Union, have made it difficult for Iranian palm oil buyers to use letters of credit and make payments via middlemen in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to Malaysian exporters.
Malaysia is the world No.2 producer of palm oil, used to make products from bio-diesel to cooking oil. It is a key supplier of Iran's palm oil, along with Indonesia, the world's top producer.
"Most of the companies selling palm oil to Iran have stopped since the end of last year," one trader with direct knowledge of the deals told Reuters on Wednesday.
