Malaysia: El Nino drags down palm oil output hinh anh 1A worker collects palm fruits inside a palm oil factory in Sepang, outside Kuala Lumpur. (Photo: Reuters)

Kuala Lumpur (VNA)Palm oil output in Malaysia is estimated to fall by 2 million tonnes in the oil year ending September 2016 due to El Nino, said top industry analyst Dorab Mistry from India-based Godrej International Ltd.

The output in the first two months of the year was 100,000 tonnes lower than the same period last year, Mistry noted.

According to the Godrej International director, the decline in production, the sharpest in at least seven years, could increase benchmark palm oil prices, which have risen 5 percent in the last two weeks, to a two-year high of 2,726 MYR (676 USD) a tonne on March 25.

Malaysia is the world’s second largest producer after Indonesia. Last year, the country produced approximately 20 million tonnes of palm oil, up 300,000 tonnes from 2014.-VNA
VNA