-  Reuters quoted traders as saying that a few major consumers in China and India had defaulted on cargoes of palm oil.

-  A trader said that buyers were unable to open letters of credit and renegotiate discounts with sellers. The default on contracts prompted selling of CPO futures last week.

-  Bloomberg quoted a lawmaker as saying that Indonesia’s Parliament has drafted the plantation bill that will reduce foreign stakes in plantations to 30% from 95% currently.

-  However, Parliament has not debated on the bill yet as it has not received the letter from President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyuno on the government agencies that will be involved in the discussion.

-  The lawmaker said that Parliament is running out of time. The lawmakers cannot carry over the bill as the next Parliament would have to redraft and resubmit a new bill if they want to proceed. The current administration will end its term in October 2014.

-  Oil World said that palm oil and other vegetable oil prices may rebound as the fall in prices has spurred demand from the energy and food sectors.

-  Oil World said that Argentina’s biodiesel exports were “unusually high” in July and the first half of August. Also, Argentina’s biodiesel production may climb from two million tonnes in 2013 to 2.8mil tonnes this year.

-  China has released its agriculture export data for the month of July. In the seven months of the year, China’s imports of soybeans rose 20.2% compared with the same period last year. The country’s imports of palm oil shrank by 0.1%.

-  Finally, USDA’s (US Department of Agriculture) forecast of bumper soybean and corn crops this year was affirmed by the annual Pro Farmer Midwest Crop Tour last week.

-  However, record harvest of soybean and corn are prompting concerns over logistics. Bloomberg cited a report by USDA saying that BNSF Railway Co and Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd have been struggling with greater-than-normal demand from shippers of coal, oil and Midwest crops.

Source: AmeSecurities