RTRS- India's March palm oil imports fall 29 pct-trade

NEW DELHI, April 13 (Reuters) - India's palm oil imports fell more than expected in March from the previous month as crude variety purchases fell more sharply than expected on higher prices while the decline in refined oil was broadly in line with forecasts in a Reuters poll.

Importers bought 28.6 percent less total palm oil in March with crude palm oil purchases at 278,696 tonnes, down 22.5 percent from the previous month, data from the Solvent Extractors' Association (SEA) showed on Friday.

Refined palm oil imports fell 38.6 percent as buying eased when New Delhi failed to introduce an anticipated import duty to counter export tax changes by Indonesia.

India, the world's No. 1 importer of cooking oils, buys mainly palm oil from Indonesia and Malaysia and a small quantity of soyoil from Argentina and Brazil.

"Palm oil imports fell as import duty tinkering by the government didn't take place, while high prices also prompted the lower monthly buy," said Prasoon Mathur, a senior analyst with Religare Commodities.

In March, Malaysia's lower stocks and higher export demand pushed the delivered cost at Indian ports of crude palm oil up by 5-10 percent, a Mumbai-based trader said.

Crude palm oil cost around $1,130 per tonne on a delivered basis to Indian ports in March, higher than $1,073 per tonne in February. Global benchmark crude palm oil prices on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange were up 0.5 percent at 3,578 ringgit ($1,170) per tonne on Friday. [ID:nL3E8FD4TS]

India imported 186,788 tonnes of refined palm oil in March, down from 304,048 tonnes in February.

Refined palm oil imports had almost trebled in February from January as buyers scrambled to stock up ahead of the March 16 budget, but dropped off in March as the world's top vegetable oil buyer did nothing to curb overseas purchases. Indonesia, the world's top palm oil producer, altered taxes in October 2011 to make exports of refined oil more attractive than those of crude palm oil to promote its downstream industry.

The higher than expected fall in palm oil purchases brought the country's total vegetable oil imports to 727,706 tonnes in March, down 17 percent from February, the Mumbai-based trade body said.

A Reuters survey had forecast average total vegetable oil imports of 847,857 tonnes in March. [ID:nL3E8FA4DH]

Soyoil imports rose 28.1 percent over February as local supply has been exhausted, while sunflower oil imports were down 6.4 percent from the previous month as demand cooled off when the winter wedding season -- a time of feasting and frying -- ended. [$1 = 3.0670 ringgits]

RTRS- China 2012 corn acreage seen up 2.7 pct, soy down -report

BEIJING, April 13 (Reuters) - China's corn acreage this year is projected to rise 2.7 percent from 2011 to reach 35 million hectares, driven by record domestic prices and Beijing's subsidies, an industry website quoted an agriculture ministry survey as saying.

A bumper corn harvest could boost supplies in the world's second largest consumer of the grain, whose production growth has fallen short of rising demand over the past three years, turning China into a net importer of corn since 2009.

"Supply of corn seeds in parts of northeast provinces has begun to fall short of demand because farmers have shown strong interest in planting corn," the ministry said after a survey of 500 counties in a report carried on an industry website (www.chinagrain.cn).

The survey data was in line with an earlier Reuters' report based on comments by farmers and analysts. [ID:nL3E8F93UC]

Acreage under soybean is likely to fall 11.2 percent this year as many farmers in the northeast provinces of Heilongjiang and Inner Mongolia have shifted to growing corn instead of soy, although wheat acreage would stay steady, the report said.

The ministry has not published the survey on its web site.(www.moa.gov.cn).

Lower soy output in China, the world's top soy importer, will drive the country to import, since domestic soy is used mainly to make food, such as tofu. Almost all Chinese crushers depend on soy imports for processing into soymeal, a feed ingredient in demand by the livestock industry.

A survey by the National Bureau of Statistics also expected an increase in corn acreage, but the bureau gave no figures.

RTRS- NOPA March U.S. soy crush seen at 143.8 mln bu

CHICAGO, April 13 (Reuters) - The National Oilseed Processors Association's monthly soybean crush data slated for release on Monday should show the U.S. crush for March at 143.8 million bushels, analysts projected on Friday.

Trade estimates ranged from 139.0 million to 146.3 million bushels. NOPA reported the February crush at 136.35 million bushels and March 2011 at 134.391 million bushels.

The average of analysts estimates for March U.S. soyoil stocks was 2.338 billion lbs, up from NOPA's February figure of 2.242 billion lbs. Forecasts ranged from 2.292 billion to 2.417 billion lbs.

RTRS- Iran buys Indian soymeal at record prices

SINGAPORE/NEW DELHI, April 13 (Reuters) - Iran has stepped up soymeal purchases from India, taking up to 275,000 tonnes in recent deals at record prices as the nation fights Western sanctions that have reduced its ability to source food from other origins.

Global soymeal prices have also been driven up by tightening supplies following a drought in South America and expectations of lower soybean plantings in the United States. The benchmark U.S. soymeal futures this week climbed to highest since August 2009, to around $396.6 a short tonne.

Indian exporters are negotiating more deals and there are expectations that soymeal contracts for another 200,000 to 250,000 tonnes will be signed in the coming weeks, trade sources in Singapore and New Delhi said on Friday.

"The Iranian situation is such that they can't buy from any other part of the world," said one Singapore-based trader. "So they are paying through the nose for Indian meal."

Iran's government is expected to start buying hundreds of thousands of tonnes of feed grains as Western sanctions are causing enormous disruption to the financing of Iran's imports, traders said on Thursday.

Iranian farmers face a shortage of feed for their huge livestock flocks as private-sector grain importers are unable to arrange payments, traders said.

Though food shipments are not targeted under the Western sanctions aimed at Iran's disputed nuclear programme, financial measures have frozen Iranian firms out of much of the global banking system, hindering grain buying.

The Iranian government, which had bought more than 2 million tonnes of bread-making wheat recently, is now poised to make substantial feed grain deals.

Iran's imports of soybeans, soymeal and soyoil are being sharply reduced by the sanctions imposed on the country over its nuclear programme by the U.S. and European Union, Hamburg-based oilseeds analysts Oil World said last week.

Trader's Highlight

DJI- NEW YORK, April 13 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks closed their worst two-week slide since November with a selloff on Friday as disappointing China growth data sparked worries the global recovery was flagging.

Concerns that Europe's debt crisis was flaring up again added to selling pressure. Sectors taking the hardest hit were those most closely linked to growth, including materials, energy and financials.

The S&P 500 is now down 3.4 percent from this year's closing high, after falling 2.7 percent over the past two weeks.

The cost of insuring Spanish debt against default hit 500 basis points for the first time on fears about the high exposure of the country's banking sector to sovereign debt.
[ID:nL3E8FD8W2] [ID:nL6E8FD4LU]

Data showed that China's economy expanded 8.1 percent in the first quarter, a rate that was slower than expected and the country's weakest pace in nearly three years.

The Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> tumbled 136.99 points, or 1.05 percent, to 12,849.59 at the close. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.SPX> slid 17.31 points, or 1.25 percent, to
1,370.26. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.IXIC> dropped 44.22 points, or 1.45 percent, to 3,011.33.

NYMEX- NEW YORK, April 13 (Reuters) - U.S. crude futures fell on Friday, following gains the previous two days, after data from China showed lower-than-expected quarterly economic growth, going against market speculation that pushed up prices in the previous session.

U.S. consumer sentiment slipped modestly in early April due to higher gasoline prices, according to the weekly Thomson Reuters/Univeristy of Michigan survey, also helping to pull down
crude futures. [ID:nL2E8FD4N1]

In addition, the Economic Cycle Research Institute's measure of U.S. economic growth eased last week, which was bearish for oil futures, though the annualized rate continued to improve.
[ID:nN9E8E5011]

Iran and six world powers prepared for Saturday's resumption of talks about Tehran's disputed nuclear program, making oil traders cautious, although no major breakthroughs are expected
at the meeting to be held in Istanbul. [ID:nL6E8FD2KP]

Iran's tensions with the West over its nuclear program have caused oil prices to rise in recent months and led to the United States and the European Union apply sanctions against the
Islamic Republic.

To avoid impact of the sanctions, Iran is concealing the destination of its oil sales by disabling tracking systems aboard its tanker fleet, making it difficult to assess how much crude Tehran is exporting. [ID:nL6E8FD4HU]

* On the New York Mercantile Exchange, May crude settled at $102.83 a barrel, down 81 cents, or 0.78 percent, after trading between $102.61 and $103.90.

* For the week, front-month crude dipped 48 cents, or 0.46 percent, after ending up at $103.31 in the week to April 4. Front-month crude has fallen in four of the last five weeks.

* Money managers cut their net long U.S. crude futures and options positions in the week to April 10 by 26,000 contracts to 199,924, according to a weekly report from the U.S. Commodity
Futures Trading Commission. [ID: nEMS26LQG7}

* The annual rate of growth in China's gross domestic product slowed to 8.1 percent in the first quarter, weakest pace in nearly three years, and below the consensus forecast of 8.3 percent. [ID:nL3E8FD8W2] That reading marked a drop from the fourth-quarter rate of 8.9 percent.

* China's implied oil demand rose moderately in March from a year ago, but was at a five-month low on a daily basis as refineries scaled back runs to the lowest since October due to maintenance and poor refining margins. {ID:nL3E8FD1UJ]

CBOT- Soybean futures on the Chicago Board of Trade ended, pressured by spillover weakness from corn and wheat as worries about slowing growth in China triggered a broad sell-off in
commodities, traders said.

* Losses were limited by robust export demand for U.S. soybeans as South American soy supplies tighten.

* Spot soybeans ended the week up 0.2 percent, the market's third consecutive weekly rise.

* Soymeal ended mixed, with nearby contracts higher on meal/oil spreading and rumors of European interest in U.S. soymeal, traders said. May and July soymeal posted contract highs and May reached $397.40 a ton, the highest spot price in 2-1/2 years.

* USDA confirmed sales of 165,000 tonnes of U.S. soybeans to China for delivery in 2012/13, boosting sales to China to 445,000 tonnes for the week. All but 55,000 tonnes were sold for
delivery in 2012/13. [ID:nL2E8FD39A]

* The average trade estimate ahead of March U.S. soy crush data due from the National Oilseed Processors Association on Monday was 143.8 million bushels, compared with NOPA's February
figure of 136.35 million bushels. [ID:nL2E8FD9J2]

* Iran has stepped up soymeal purchases from India, taking up to 275,000 tonnes in recent deals at record prices as the nation fights Western sanctions that have reduced its ability to
source food from other origins. [ID:nL3E8FD7P1]

* China's soybean acreage is likely to fall 11.2 percent in 2012 as many farmers in Heilongjiang and Inner Mongolia have shifted to growing corn, an industry website quoted an agriculture ministry survey as saying. [ID:nL3E8FD3BS]

FCPO- SINGAPORE, April 13 (Reuters) - Malaysian palm oil futures closed lower on Friday, as traders took profits from a 13-month high hit earlier in the week, while market players are also keeping a close watch on Malaysian palm exports data due on Monday.

Palm oil futures went as high as 3,628 ringgit on Tuesday, a level not seen since March 8 last year, as industry regulator Malaysian Palm Oil Board data pointed to lower-than-expected
stocks and improving exports, painting a bullish picture for the edible oil.

Benchmark June palm oil futures on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange traded 1.4 percent lower to close at 3,510 ringgit ($1,150) per tonne.

Traded volumes stood at 35,013 lots of 25 tonnes each, much higher than the usual 25,000 lots.

On the technicals front, Reuters market analyst Wang Tao posted a bearish view, saying palm oil would drop to 3,481 ringgit per tonne, based on a wave cycle analysis. [ID:nL3E8FD2CJ]

Malaysia's palm oil stocks for March fell to a seven-month low at 1.96 million tonnes, exceeding estimates in a Reuters poll that called for a 3.5 percent drop in palm stocks to 1.99 million tonnes, prompting some traders who worried about the shortfall to buy more crude palm oil. [PALM/POLL]

Export demand, meanwhile, recorded a monthly gain of close to 9 percent for the first 10 days of April. Cargo surveyors Intertek Testing Services and Societe Generale de Surveillance will release exports for the first 15 days of April on Monday.[PALM/ITS][PALM/SGS]

REGIONAL EQUITY- April 13 (Reuters) - Most Southeast stock markets gained on Friday with Singapore, Indonesia and the Philippines hitting more than one-week closing highs as a better-than-expected outcome for Italy's sovereign debt sale aided sentiment though slower first quarter Chinese growth capped gains.

The Philippines <.PSI> jumped 1 percent to its highest close since April 2 led by holding firms. Indonesia <.JKSE> rose 0.5 percent to its highest closing since April 5, while Malaysia
<.KLSE> closed 0.1 percent firmer.

Singapore <.FTSTI> edged up 0.3 percent with shares of Keppel Corp Ltd jumping 2 percent after brokers issued upbeat notes on the company following a record $4.1 billion Brazil rig order.

Bucking the trend, Vietnam <.VNI> closed 0.6 percent weaker. Thailand's stock market <.SETI> was closed for the Songkran holiday.