KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 12 — Malaysian palm oil stocks are expected to decline to around 2 million tonnes this year, compared with 2.19 million tonnes in 2022, the Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB) said on Thursday.
MPOB’s Director-General Ahmad Parveez Ghulam Kadir also told a seminar that production in the world second-largest producer in 2023 should rise to 19 million tonnes, from 18.45 million
tonnes in 2022.
He said Malaysia’s benchmark crude palm oil prices were expected to trade in a range of between 4,000-4,200 ringgit per tonne this year.
Prices hit a record average of RM4,910 (US$1,123.57) a tonne last year due to edible oil supply shortages triggered by the Russia-Ukraine conflict and top producer Indonesia’s policy restricting exports.
Malaysian palm oil futures dropped to their lowest in nearly three weeks on Wednesday, on fears of slowing demand.
Ahmad Parveez said the migrant labour situation in Malaysia had improved toward the second half of 2022, lifting palm oil output. “For 2023, labour situation is expected to improve but the concerns on availability are still there,” he added.
Plantations across the Southeast Asian nation are facing their worst labour crisis since the industry began in 1917, with arrivals of workers hit by the pandemic.
Malaysia’s palm industry expected the labour woes to ease after the government lifted the Covid-19 freeze on recruitment last year, but workers trickled in at snail’s pace, largely because of slow government approvals and concerns over worker protections.
Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim on Tuesday said the government would ease hiring rules for foreign workers in Malaysia.
— Reuters
