Kuala lumpur: Crude palm oil (CPO) futures on Bursa Malaysia Derivatives ended mostly higher on Wednesday, buoyed by gains in soybean oil and bargain hunting, as reported by CGS International Futures Malaysia Sdn Bhd.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, Malaysian palm oil exports saw an estimated increase of 15 percent, reaching 1.38 million tonnes in July. The Chicago Board of Trade soybean oil futures remained stable after experiencing a nearly two percent surge in the previous session, following an announcement from the US administration regarding a supportive biofuel policy. This policy enhances biofuel blending into gasoline and diesel, exempting only smaller refineries from blending mandates.

Meanwhile, Sathia Varqa, a senior analyst at Fastmarkets Palm Oil Analytics, mentioned to Bernama that traders are eagerly awaiting the July production estimates from the Malaysian Palm Oil Association (MPOA), which are due tomorrow. These estimates precede the Malaysian Palm Oil Board's (MPOB) official monthly report scheduled for release on August 10.

Citing UOB Kay Hian's July plantation survey, Malaysia's CPO production is projected to grow by six to 10 percent month-on-month in July. The output in Sabah and Sarawak is expected to increase by one to five percent, while Peninsular Malaysia is anticipated to achieve stronger growth of 10 to 14 percent.

At the market close, the October 2026 contract rose RM6 to RM4,702 per tonne, November 2026 climbed RM12 to RM4,745 per tonne, December 2026 increased RM19 to RM4,783 per tonne, and the January 2027 contract advanced RM23 to RM4,817 per tonne. Conversely, the August 2026 contract fell by RM32 to RM4,519 per tonne, and September 2026 slipped RM6 to RM4,646 per tonne.

Trading volume saw an uptick to 109,598 lots from the previous 96,435 lots on Tuesday, with open interest rising to 309,063 contracts from 305,012 contracts earlier. The physical CPO price for August South remained unchanged at RM4,560 per tonne.