Published at 04:18 (GMT) 16 Mar
TheStar: Malaysia, the second-largest palm grower, raised its palm oil export tax from zero to 4.5% for April, a government circular showed on Monday (16 Mar), ending a duty-free policy held since September. The rate was scrapped from September to December, with the step later extended to end-February. The Southeast Asian country calculated a reference price of MYR 2,288 (USD 619) per tonne for April crude palm oil, effectively raising the export duty to 4.5%. (assuming USD 1 = MYR 3.6985)
On FX, USD/MYR re-tested 3.7000 handle on overnight greenback strength and slid in global oil prices. Last seen near 3.7060/90 levels. Focus remains on the upside given sustained dollar strength and speculations of hawkish bias at the FOMC meeting this week. A break of resistance at 3.7190 will expose bulls to strong barrier at 3.7370. KLCi near neutral at last check. IF
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