Palm oil climbs

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian palm oil futures extended gains on Tuesday to hit five-month highs on concerns about production, and tracking gains in related edible oils.

The benchmark palm oil contract for November delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange was up 1.4 percent at 2,748 ringgit ($642.06) at the midday break, its highest since March 24, and heading for a fourth straight session of gains.

Traded volumes stood at 23,622 lots of 25 tonnes each at noon. "Demand (for palm oil) is still the same but local production is not coming up, which is the main reason why the market is holding up," said a trader from Kuala Lumpur, adding that he did not expect the strong surge to continue.