KUALA LUMPUR: The crude palm oil (CPO) futures contract on Bursa Malaysia Derivatives is expected to trade range-bound at between RM6,100 and RM6,500 a tonne for next week with an upside bias.

       Palm oil trader David Ng said expectations of stronger export numbers would also continue to lend support for the commodity.

       Meanwhile, Palm Oil Analytics owner and co-founder Dr Sathia Varqa said CPO futures were likely to shoot up at the market opening on Monday due to the announcement of Indonesia’s ban on exports of cooking oil from April 28 onwards.

       According to a news report, Indonesian President Joko Widodo has banned exports of cooking oil and its raw materials from April 28 until further notice, saying he will continue to monitor and evaluate the policy’s implementation to ensure Indonesia -- the world’s biggest palm oil producer -- has an abundant supply of affordable cooking oil domestically.

       For the week just ended, CPO futures were traded mostly higher amid the firmer Chicago Board of Trade’s soybean oil prices, higher crude oil prices and expectations of stronger exports.

       The market was closed on Tuesday in conjunction with the Nuzul Al-Quran holiday.

       On a Friday-to-Friday basis, May 2022 gained RM179 to RM6,871 per tonne, June 2022 rose RM168 to RM6,625 per tonne, and July 2022 increased RM45 to RM6,355 per tonne.

       Meanwhile, August 2022 fell RM19 to RM6,162 per tonne, September 2022 was RM22 weaker at RM6,045 per tonne, and October 2022 slid RM44 to RM5,966 per tonne.

       Weekly volume shrank to 204,757 lots from 271,054 lots last week, while open interest narrowed to 203,392 contracts from 231,959 contracts previously.

       The physical CPO price for April South rose RM80 to RM6,900 a tonne. - Bernama