KUALA LUMPUR: The price of crude palm oil (CPO) will continue to trade above RM5,000 per tonne level for the first half of 2022 amid a shortage of edible oil supply - sunflower oil - due to the Russia-Ukraine war, Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB) said.

       Director-general Datuk Dr Ahmad Parveez Ghulam Kadir said as there is no clear prediction on how long the conflict will last, palm oil will continue to be in demand despite its current high price.

       The Russia-Ukraine war is a major factor in CPO price surging to RM8,000 per tonne last week.

       "What is more important is for us to ensure that we have enough supply, and it is not limited to CPO but also RBD (refined, bleached and deodorised palm oil),” he told reporters at the Palm and Lauric Oils price outlook conference and exhibition hosted by Bursa Malaysia today.

       Ukraine and Russia are the major producers of the world’s sunflower oil, accounting for 7.3 million tonnes and 5.8 million tonnes respectively in 2020.

       Together these two countries account for nearly 73 per cent of the export trade in sunflower oil. - Bernama