Malaysian palm oil futures were near MYR 3,780 per tonne, continuing its bullish traction for the fifth session in a row in the wake of fresh data from the industry regulator that showed palm oil inventories at the end of December fell by 4.64% to their lowest in three months of 2.29 million metric ton. In addition, the Malaysian Palm Oil Board revealed that crude palm oil production tumbled 13.31% from November to 1.55 million tons in December, while shipments dropped by 5.12% to 1.33 million. The contracts moved further away from a 2-1/2-month low hit last week, supported by a climb in rival edible oil and a flat ringgit. Meantime, prices of crude oil rose further as tensions in the Middle East persisted and Libya suspended its oil production. In top buyer India, palm oil imports in December rose to their highest in four months.
