Palm Oil's Horrid Year Is Down to More Than Just Orangutans
- Futures trade near the lowest level in more than three years
- Global glut, tumbling petroleum costs weigh on price outlook
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The world’s most-used edible oil is having a horrendous year as a powerful mix of drivers pushes down prices -- from a slump in petroleum costs to allegations expanding plantations have destroyed orangutan habitats.
Benchmark futures in Malaysia have plunged about 18 percent this year, similar to the annual decline in 2017, with prices languishing near their lowest in more than three years. Used in everything from chocolate to fuel, palm oil will probably end the year at 2,000 ringgit a metric ton, according to a Bloomberg survey this month. That compares with 2,044 ringgit on Friday.