InfoSAWIT, KUALA LUMPUR – Crude palm oil (CPO) futures on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives are expected to remain range-bound next week as market participants weigh concerns over potentially weaker production against still-robust inventory levels.
Jim Teh, senior palm oil trader at Interband Group of Companies, projected that CPO futures would trade between RM4,200 and RM4,300 per tonne, citing Malaysia's strong palm oil stock position reflected in recent Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB) data.
According to Teh, prices within this range could stimulate buying interest from key importing countries.
"Prices at these levels are likely to attract buyers from India, China, Pakistan, the Middle East, the European Union, and the United States," he said, as quoted by Bernama on Sunday (14/6/2026).
A more bullish outlook was offered by David Ng, an independent trader from Kuala Lumpur-based Iceberg X Sdn Bhd, who believes concerns over lower production could support stronger prices.
"We expect prices to trade between RM4,400 and RM4,550 per tonne next week," Ng said.
Weekly CPO Futures End Lower
Despite differing forecasts for the week ahead, CPO futures recorded weekly losses overall.
Comparing Friday-to-Friday settlements, the June 2026 contract declined by RM105 to RM4,387 per tonne, while the July 2026 contract fell RM91 to RM4,435 per tonne.
The August 2026 contract dropped RM73 to RM4,511 per tonne, while September 2026 declined RM79 to RM4,475 per tonne.
Similarly, the October 2026 contract slipped RM72 to RM4,544 per tonne, and the November 2026 contract fell RM76 to RM4,571 per tonne.
While prices weakened, trading activity strengthened considerably. Weekly trading volume surged to 418,814 lots, compared with 298,261 lots in the previous week.
Meanwhile, open interest declined to 283,513 contracts from 293,957 contracts, indicating that some market participants opted to liquidate positions following recent price volatility.
In the physical market, the June South CPO price eased by RM50 to RM4,470 per tonne.
Market participants are expected to continue monitoring Malaysia's production outlook, demand trends from major importing nations, and movements in competing vegetable oil markets to determine the direction of CPO prices in the coming week. The interplay between relatively strong inventories and concerns over weaker output is likely to remain the dominant market driver. (T2)
