Lack of direction

It could be said that edible oils lack direction at the moment. In the US Soya prices have been weaker in early July caused by better then expected crop forecasts. Initially Palm oil tracked lower with Soya but then has bounced back a little as early July export figures showed some improvement. However that improving export figures in turn was mainly caused because June was such a weak month so any gain is not really that much of a surprise. This could lead to further falls in Palm Oil if exports don’t pick up more. Coconut oil has been slightly up at the moment on the back of the same pickup in spot demand that’s been seen in Palm Oil.

Desiccated prices FOB have been drifting weaker recently more on oversupply from cheaper origins then anything else. Premium quality sellers have not seen much of a dip at all. However higher freight prices have been pushing up the C+F prices quite quickly with some origins reporting $100 per MT increase. Its expected that peak season from End August through till November that these freight rates may increase even more!