VEGOILS-Palm set for nearly 21% annual gain after two years of losses

(Updates with midday break prices, analyst comment) By Dewi Kurniawati JAKARTA, Dec 31 (Reuters) - Malaysian palm oil futures looked set to post an annual gain of about 21% on Tuesday, snapping two consecutive years of losses, although the market traded lower for the day due to a lack of fresh buying at the year-end. The benchmark palm oil contract FCPOc3 for March delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange fell 53 ringgit, or 1.16%, to 4,498 ringgit ($1,007.17) a metric ton by the midday break. "The futures were seen trading sharply lower today on lack of fresh buying from destination markets," said Anilkumar Bagani, research head at Sunvin Group, a Mumbai-based vegetable oil brokerage. Dalian's most-active soyoil contract DBYcv1 gained 0.05% and its palm oil contract DCPcv1 lost 1.32%. Soyoil prices on the Chicago Board of Trade BOcv1 inched lower by 0.05%. Palm oil tracks price movements of rival edible oils as it competes for a share of the global vegetable oils market. Oil prices rose in early trade after data showed China's manufacturing activity expanded in December, but for a second consecutive year oil was on track to end lower due to demand concerns in top consuming countries. O/R Stronger crude oil futures make palm a more attractive option for biodiesel feedstock. The ringgit MYR= , palm's currency of trade, rose 0.13% against the U.S. dollar, making the commodity more expensive for buyers holding foreign currencies. Cargo surveyors estimated Malaysian palm oil exports during Dec. 1-25 dropped 1.1%-4% from a month earlier. ($1 = 4.4660 ringgit) (Reporting by Dewi Kurniawati; Editing by Janane Venkatraman and Subhranshu Sahu) (([email protected])) ((For a table on Malaysian physical palm oil prices, including refined oil, Reuters Terminal users can double click on or type OILS/MY01 . * To view freight rates from Peninsula Malaysia/Sumatra to China, India, Pakistan and Rotterdam, please key in OILS/ASIA2 and press enter, or double click between the brackets. * Reuters Terminal users can see cash and futures edible oil prices by double clicking on the codes in the brackets: To go to the next page in the same chain, hit F12. To go back, hit F11. Vegetable oils OILS/ASIA1 Malaysian palm oil exports SGSPALM1 CBOT soyoil futures 0#BO: CBOT soybean futures 0#S: Indian solvent SOLVENT01 Dalian Commodity Exchange DC/MENU Dalian soyoil futures 0#DBY: Dalian refined palm oil futures 0#DCP: Zhengzhou rapeseed oil 0#COI: European edible oil prices/trades OILS/E ))