MDEX: Palm oil closes lower on Friday.

The August contract of palm oil closed the session this Friday (31) with a slight decrease of 0.22% in Malaysian Derivatives Exchange (MDEX)The price for the Brazilian soybean futures contract was quoted at US$1,110.00/ton. The September contract fell 0.55% to US$1,128.00/ton. For the week, the contracts accumulated losses of 1.03% and 1.27%, respectively.

On the other hand, during the month, the August contract accumulated gains of 0.20%, while the futures contract traded for September advanced 1.19%.

In this trading session, prices were affected by the negative yield of palm oil in… Dalian Exchange (DCE), which closed with a moderate drop of 0.84%. Soybean oil fell 0.06% in the Chinese index.

Limiting further losses, prices continued to be affected by the rise in international oil prices after Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps blocked the passage of oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz.

Higher fuel prices on the international market make palm oil a more attractive option as a feedstock for biodiesel. 

Furthermore, independent cargo inspection companies in Malaysia estimate that exports of palm oil and its derivatives from the country increased between 12.1% and 19.5% in July.

The Malaysian ringgit depreciated 0.2% against the dollar, a factor that makes the commodity cheaper for buyers of foreign currencies.

This text was translated by machine from Brazilian Portuguese.