Palm gains on stronger overnight U.S. soyoil

By Emily Chow

KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) - Malaysian palm oil futures rose on Monday, tracking overnight gains in U.S. soyoil on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) and supported by expectations that Indian edible oil imports could jump to record levels this year.

The benchmark palm oil contract for October delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange was up 0.6% at 1,983 ringgit ($482.36) per tonne, snapping two days of losses.

Palm oil may rise to 2,001 ringgit per tonne, as suggested by a projection analysis, said Wang Tao, a Reuters market analyst for commodities and energy technicals.

"The market is up tracking U.S. soyoil, while news from India also aided the market," said a Kuala Lumpur-based trader.

India's edible oil imports are likely to rise 7.3% in 2019/20 to a record high as scant monsoon rains are expected to curtail yields of summer-sown oilseeds such as soybeans and groundnut, said a senior industry official.

India is the world's largest edible oil consumer, and counts palm oil as one of its key imports.

In related oils, U.S. soyoil futures were down 0.2% as of 1041 GMT on Monday, having jumped 1.6% on Friday.

Chicago corn and soybean futures settled up on Friday as investors weighed trade talks between the United States and China and expected cooler U.S. weather against uncertainty over acreage levels following a rain-soaked spring.

U.S. grains, however, settled lower on Monday as forecasts of cooler weather across much of the U.S. Midwest eased fears about potential yield losses.

Meanwhile, the September soyoil contract on the Dalian exchange rose 0.5% and the Dalian September palm oil contract gained 0.6%.

Palm oil prices are affected by movements in related oils that compete for a share of the global vegetable oils market.

($1 = 4.1110 ringgit)

($1 = 68.9656 Indian rupees)

($1 = 6.8799 Chinese yuan)

(Reporting by Emily Chow; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu)