KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 10 (Bernama) -- Malaysian exporters are invited to seizethe opportunity to participate in the trade mission and investment missionto India from Sept 19-28.

8/10/04, INDIA, (Oilmandi) - Inflation is back in the news. But it is tooearly to hit the panic button yet. At 7.5% for the week ended July 24, therate is higher than what we have been used to. A rise in food prices and aspike in the price of iron ore have been this week’s main culprits.

8/10/04, Oilmandi - Indonesia's palm oil exports in July totaled 603,276metric tons, up 2.2% from 590,116 tons in June, traders said Tuesday,citing estimates from cargo surveyor PT Sucofindo.

KUCHING, Aug 10 (Bernama) -- The proposed RM70 million-integrated palm oilrefinery at Senari near here is expected to provide an annual processingcapacity of 300,000 tonnes of crude palm oil (CPO) and 600,000 tonnes ofpalm kernels initially, said Tan Sri Bujang Nor, chairman of the AssarGroup of Companies.The complex, scheduled for completion in early 2006, will occupy a12-hectare piece of land adjacent to an on-going independent oil terminal(IOT) project at Senari."We (shareholders) are calling for tenders and will start the projectas soon as possible," he told reporters after the project's agreementsigning ceremony here today.Assar Refinery Holdings Sdn Bhd, holds more than 40 percent of theequity in the joint venture firm, Assar Refinery Services Sdn Bhd. Itspartners are the Sarawak Land Consolidation and Rehabilitation Authority(Salcra) and Cargill of the United States.Salcra will become the principal supplier of the raw materials to theproposed refinery while Cargill will be the principal buyer of theprocessed products.Also present at the signing ceremony was Sarawak's Land DevelopmentAssistant Minister Francis Harden, who represented the Deputy ChiefMinister and Salcra chairman Tan Sri Alfred Jabu.Plantation Enterprises and Commodities Minister Datuk Peter Chin saidthe refinery would save millers and planters millions of ringgit ontransportation costs once it became operational.The site of the complex is strategically located near Senari Port,which has a good draft of about 10 to 11 metres to accommodate vessels upto 20,000 deadweight tonnes which can sail to international ports.In Chin's speech, which was read out by the ministry's parliamentarysecretary, Ng Lip Yong, the minister said it would spur plantationdevelopment in southern Sarawak besides stimulating the creation of otheradded value dowmstream industries.It would augur well with the target set by the Sarawak stategovernment to have one million hectares planted with oil palm by 2010, hesaid.At present, Sarawak has 460,000 hectares planted with the crop out ofa national total 3.8 million hectares. -- BERNAMA

10/08/2004 Bernama - Musa was responding to questions and suggestions fromassemblymen that the government reviewed sales tax imposed on crude palmoil as well as lottery tickets.Earlier, Assistant Finance Minister Datuk Sapawi Ahmad, when replyingto Philip Lasimbang (BN-Moyog), said the government could not merely tryto find new sources of income."Focus must also be given to improvements in financial management andprudent practices," he said.The government, however, would undertake studies to identify newproducts or services which could be subjected to sales tax and review theexisting rates, he said.Sapawi said the government would continue to make efforts to collectoutstanding taxes totalling RM447 million up to December last year.-- BERNAMA

10/08/04, CHICAGO (Dow Jones)--The size of the new U.S. soybean crop isexpected to be raised Thursday in the U.S. Department of Agriculture'smonthly supply and demand report to 2.965 billion bushels with a yield of40.2 bushels per acre, up from 2.940 billion and 39.9 bushels,respectively, in the previous report, according to a survey of industryanalysts.The USDA's August supply and demand report is scheduled for release at0730 CT (1230 GMT) on Thursday.In the survey, estimates on soybean production ranged from 2.881billion to 3.042 billion bushels, and estimates on yield ranged from 39.2to 41.3 bushels.Industry analysts agreed that new-crop production will be the keyfeature in this report, as it will reflect the first government survey ofthe crop. Unlike last year, the crop thus far has experienced cool anddamp weather as opposed to hot and dry conditions, which stunted thegrowth of the 2003-04 crop.Because of the non-threatening conditions seen so far in the growingseason, industry analysts are anticipating the figure to approach the 3billion-bushel mark."Last year, the crop looked good, smelled good, tasted good, and endedup being no good. It's not delayed like it was last year," said StewartRamsey, senior economist at Global Insight at Eddystone, Pa.Last year's crop was measured at a paltry 2.418 billion bushels.

8/7/04, Oilmandi - Even as crude varieties of palm group of oils arelevied with a 65% customs duty, many importers allege that they end uppaying 75% duty on it, which is being charged on the refined varieties.

6/8/04, Oilworld - The return of monsoon rains in India has improvedoilseed crop prospects but the damage from drought in July cannot be madeup. The country can expect only a mediocre oilseed crop in 2004,significantly below last year’s record. The result will be a notable risein import requirements next season.

Friday August 6, 10:03 AM , KUALA LUMPUR (Dow Jones)--Kumpulan Fima Bhd.(6491.KU) plans to sell its entire stake, comprising 26.5 million shares,in oil palm cultivator Ladang Perbadanan-Fima Bhd. (5851.KU), to GlamourGreen Sdn. Bhd. for 100.7 million ringgit ($1=MYR3.80) cash. The estimatednet gain from the sale is MYR62.6 million after the deduction of thecompany's investment costs in Ladang. Kumpulan Fima provides storage andfreight services for edible and non-edible oils.

KARACHI, Aug 6 Asia Pulse - Pakistani vegetable oil imports were likely torise in coming weeks on fears of a further hike in world palm oil prices,but local rates remained stable on sufficient stocks, dealers said.