RTRS- Malaysia delays tax free crude palm oil export quotas

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 30 (Reuters) - Malaysia has delayed issuing quotas to export crude palm oil without taxes for 2012 as it drafts policy to counter competition from top supplier Indonesia, which slashed its export taxes for refined oil, sources told Reuters.

The delay by Malaysia, the world's No.2 producer, leaves more supply for local processors, but comes at a time when demand for Malaysian refined oil has fallen due to the cheaper prices of Indonesian edible oil.

Plantations holding export licences say the delay is hampering their ability to supply overseas refiners with feedstock and meet existing export contracts, putting in jeopardy Malaysia's $26 billion edible oil industry.

RTRS -POLL-CBOT soy price to fall 4 percent in 2012

CHICAGO, Jan 30 (Reuters) - Soybean prices are likely to fall for a second straight year by the end of 2012 if crop weather in the United States, the world's top producer, improves after a difficult season in 2011, a Reuters poll showed.

Front-month soybean futures at the Chicago Board of Trade should finish 2012 at $11.47 a bushel, down about 4 percent from the end of 2011, a poll of 12 analysts showed.

"I think we'll have periods where (prices) will go up from where we are, but overall if we have normal weather we'll see an easing of the tight supply for everything," said Terry Roggensack, analyst for The Hightower Report.

Trader's Highlight

DJI- NEW YORK, Jan 30 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks edged lower on Monday on stalled Greek debt talks, but an afternoon rally cut losses in a sign of the underlying resilience the market has shown early in the year.

Major indexes had fallen more than 1 percent as negotiations between the Greek government and private bondholders over the restructuring of 200 billion euros of debt failed to reach an agreement before the start of a summit of European leaders.

But by the afternoon those losses were cut sharply. Optimism that the U.S. markets can shrug off Europe's troubles has fueled gains in 2012, with the S&P 500 up 4.7 percent this month. Money managers, some of whom missed the upward move, appear willing to buy on intraday declines.

The Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> dropped 6.74 points, or 0.05 percent, to 12,653.72. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.SPX> lost 3.31 points, or 0.25 percent, to 1,313.02. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.IXIC> fell 4.61 points, or 0.16 percent, to 2,811.94.

NYMEX- Jan 30 (Reuters) - U.S. crude futures ended lower for a second straight session on Monday as stalled Greek debt restructuring talks pulled the dollar up against the euro, which prompted investors to pare holdings in risky assets such as oil.

Oil shed some of its Iran-related risk premium as well, as Iranian politicians postponed a debate on halting crude exports to Europe.

Trading was choppy as Iran sent mixed signals after its oil minister, Rostam Qasemi, said Tehran would soon stop exporting to "some" countries, though he did not identify them. His remarks kept up the Islamic Republic's rhetoric against the European's Union's move to ban Iranian crude by July 1.

On the New York Mercantile Exchange, crude for March delivery settled at $98.78 a barrel, falling 78 cents, or 0.78 percent, after trading between $98.43 to $100.05.

CBOT-SOYBEANS, Soybean futures on the Chicago Board of Trade fell nearly 3 percent, their biggest single-day loss since September, pressured by much-needed rains in South American crop areas and a firmer dollar, traders said.

CBOT March soybeans fell below their 20-day moving average at $12.06 and ended below $12 for the first time since Jan. 20.

The dollar rose against the euro, a bearish signal for dollar-backed U.S. grains and oilseeds, as investors bet there will be little resolution in the near term on a Greek debt deal.

Traders also said the inability of China's Dalian soy futures to post a significant rally after last week's Lunar New Year holiday lent pressure to CBOT soy.

FCPO- SINGAPORE, Jan 30 (Reuters) - Malaysian crude palm oil slipped to a five-week low on Monday on slowing demand and investor caution ahead of a likely debt swap deal for Greece that would help the country avoid a messy default.

European leaders will sign off on a permanent rescue fund for the euro zone at a summit on Monday although unresolved problems in Greece are expected to cast a shadow on the discussions.

In signs of slowing demand for palm oil, cargo surveyors' reports showed a double-digit decline in Malaysian palm oil exports from Jan. 1 to 25.

A stronger ringgit used to price palm oil feedstock also made the commodity more expensive for refiners, limiting trade interest in the palm oil market that has lost close to 3 percent this month.

Benchmark April palm oil futures on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange lost 1.7 percent to close at 3,082 ringgit ($1,009) per tonne. Prices earlier touched 3,079 ringgit, a level last seen since Dec. 22. Traded volumes stood at 24,058 lots of 25 tonnes each, just slightly lower than the usual 25,000 lots.

REGIONAL EQUITY- Jan 30 (Reuters) - Southeast Asian stock markets fell on Monday with Indonesia hitting a two-week low as worries about the prospects of a Greek swap deal and weaker-than-expected U.S. economic growth weighed on the market.

Shares of banks led the fall as investors booked profits after a four-week rally.

Indonesia's benchmark <.JKSE> fell 1.8 percent hit by a sell-off from foreign funds and a trading error at the Jakarta Stock Exchange that prevented 70 percent of listed brokers from executing transactions, the bourse said.

Singapore <.FTSTI> lost 1 percent, the Philippines <.PSI> fell 0.8 percent, Malaysia <.KLSE> slid 0.5 percent, and Thailand <.SETI> closed 0.2 percent weaker.