Palm oil closes up

Malaysian crude palm oil futures ended 1.9 per cent higher on Wednesday as traders closed their positions ahead of the Christmas holiday.

Crude palm oil has been one of the most bearish commodities this year, analysts say, with surging stock levels and a weaker crude mineral oil market dragging the vegetable oil down 65 per cent from a March peak of 4,486 ringgit per ton.

Palm oil seems sensitive to the swings in crude but it (the firmer close) is generally attributable to position squaring ahead of the holidays said the head of a local commodities broker.

Another trader said: Good exports for December have been priced in, so what the market needs to find out is how January exports will be like.

My guess is that it won’t be as spectacular as December or November. The benchmark March 2009 on Bursa Malaysia’s

Derivatives Exchange closed 29 ringgit higher at 1,559 ringgit ($448.9) per ton.

Gains in other traded months ranged between 22 ringgit and 30 ringgit.

Vegetable oil markets move in tandem with crude oil as soyoil and rapeseed oil are heavily subsidised as feedstock for biodiesel, which competes directly with petroleum diesel.

In Malaysia’s physical market, crude palm oil for both December and January shipments in both the southern and central regions saw bids and offers at 1,560/1,570 ringgit.

Trades were done at 1,560-1,570 ringgit.

The Indonesian palm oil market slowed as many players have gone for holidays.

The Jakarta-based state marketing centre will not hold any more palm auctions for this year. The next will be on Jan. 5, 2009.

Indonesia’s largest listed plantation firm, PT Astra Agro Lestari , also said it will not hold palm oil auctions from Dec. 25 to Jan. 2.

Producers in Medan -- home to Belawan port, Indonesia’s key port for palm oil exports -- did not hold an auction.

Meanwhile, refiners in Jakarta sold refined, bleached, deodorised (RBD) palm oil, used as cooking oil, at about 5,700 rupiah ($0.523) a kg, down from 5,850 rupiah per kg on Tuesday.—Reuters

Malaysia's Islamic Party and gusty opportunity

Malaysia's opposition Islamic Party back sekutunya odds with the party of non-Muslims. This happens because the Islamic Party still supports the implementation of sharia law.

Husam Musa, Vice Chairman of the Party Islam Se-Malaysia (PAS), be caught in the rain criticism from other party members who joined together in the opposition coalition. PAS alliances with three other parties. Husam criticized when states in a forum on Saturday (20/12), that partainya hope to encourage the implementation of religious law if the opposition to power.

Husam, Tuesday in Kuala Lumpur, expressed horror over the controversy his speech. He did not mention that the new policy because partainya many people have been known since that time.

"We still cling to the opinion, and we can not mengesampingkannya. However, we assure our allies, on the implementation of the action there will be no coercion volition. There should be a decision from all the opposition members if we want to apply the law, "he said.

Long discourse

Islamic Party for many years has been to create a discourse about the state based on religion. This discourse on the support of the Malaysian Muslim citizens in rural Kelantan and Terengganu.

However, PAS and weaken the discourse that after forming political alliances with the Party of Democratic Action, which most members are citizens of China and Malaysia multiras party People's Justice Party before the general election in March last. Alliances are not presumed to get a significant voice. (AP / JOE)


Source: Kompas

Indonesia arrested 85 residents of Immigration Malaysia

Malaysian immigration arrest 85 Indonesian Citizens because they do not have identity (documents) after the full operation of the combined passenger Rail Land Melayu Bhd (KTM), Sunday (21/12). Malaysian immigration Rela assisted by the team, the Public Service Department, Malaysia (JPAM) and the National Registration Department (join the impeachment sit) conduct operations to check the passenger KTM and found 117 foreign citizens do not have a clear identity, 85 are Indonesian citizens.

Foreign citizens who participate in other detained 58 people, namely Bangladesh, Myanmar 15 people, and the rest from Nigeria, China and Nepal. All the detainees will be added to the prison Langkap, Perak, and the International Airport in Kuala Lumpur (KLIA) before the judge and deported, so the mass media of Malaysia, on Monday (22/12).

A Malaysian immigration officials Hider Mohd Yusoff said, has been operating in check as much as 700 people. From the examination, 177 people have not found a clear identity. Operation immigration is done to press without the permission of foreign immigrants in Malaysia, in addition to the many complaints about the number of outstanding court in KTM.

JIM
Source: Antara