Palm oil declines

SINGAPORE - Palm oil posted the biggest drop in eight days as crude oil slumped and soybeans declined, reducing demand for the tropical commodity used in food and biofuels.

The September delivery contract fell 1.5 percent to 2,363 ringgit ($737) a metric ton on the Malaysia Derivatives Exchange.

Palm oil has fallen about 7.3 percent this quarter on forecasts for record output of world oilseed crops and was at 2,367 ringgit at 4:05 pm. "The mid-term technical outlook is still pointing down," said Ryan Long, a futures trader at OSK Investment Bank Sdn. "The immediate downside target is 2,350" ringgit a ton, he added.