Exports of palm oil from Indonesia, the world’s largest producing-country, declined 9 percent in March from a month earlier on lower output. Shipments dropped to 1.06 million metric tons last month from 1.16 million tons in February, the Indonesian Palm Oil Association said in an e-mailed statement today. Sales were 1.18 million tons in March 2009. Falling supplies from the country may help support prices, which have dropped 6.2 percent this year on the Malaysia Derivatives Exchange. «Production was seasonally low in February and March,» Joelianto, head of trading at PT Sinar Mas Agro Resources and Technology, said by telephone from Jakarta. «We preferred to control sales and maintain our stockpiles.» India was the largest single buyer of Indonesian palm oil in March, purchasing 334,157 tons, or 31 percent of total shipments, the association said. The country shipped 3.6 million tons of the commodity in the first three months, compared with 3.4 million tons a year earlier, the group said. Palm oil for July delivery rose 1.1 percent to settle at 2,498 ringgit ($780) a ton in Kuala Lumpur. PT Astra Agro Lestari, Indonesia’s largest plantations company by market value, said yesterday its first-quarter palm oil sales fell 1.2 percent from a year earlier to 223,308 tons. Production for the period ended March 31 declined 3.2 percent to 218,791 tons.
Agro Perspectiva
