Workers stand near palm oil fruits inside a palm oil factory in Sepang, outside Kuala Lumpur. (File photo: Reuters)Hanoi (VNA) - Analystsremain upbeat on palm oil prices next year after Malaysia's palm oil inventoryfell to a three-month low in November and exports to China remained steady.
MIDF Research said in a report thattight supply and expected strong demand from palm oil importing countries suchas China would keep crude palm oil (CPO) prices to improve next year.
It anticipated CPO prices to trendhigher at 2,450 and 2,600 ringgit per tonne in 2020 and 2021, respectively.
The year-to-date average CPO pricestayed at about 2,070 ringgit per tonne, which was within its target CPO priceof 2,090 ringgit per tonne this year.
Malaysia's official data released onDecember 10 showed that the world second largest palm oil producer stocksdropped 4.1 percent to a three months low of 2.3 million tonnes in Novemberfrom its previous month, as weak output outweighed lower exports.
While its palm oil exports to mostmajor countries fell, its shipment to China rose 23.5 percent month-on-month to340,230 tonnes.
According to analysts, the increaseddemand could be due to buying activities ahead of the Chinese New Year, and Malaysia'simproved trade dealing with China.
MIDF believed Malaysia's recent tradedeals with China would reinforce the CPO demand from the second largest economynext year.
Malaysia had earlier signed amemorandum of understanding with the China Chamber of Commerce of Foodstuff andNative Produce to increase purchases of palm oil by an additional 1.9 milliontonnes between 2019 till 2023.
It has also partnered with China'sBohai Commodity Exchange with the aim of supplying about 1.5 million tonnes ofCPO to China by 2020./.
VNA
