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alm oil export growth will decelerate in the second quarter of this year due to weakening demand and fewer stocks released to overseas markets, an industry group says.

Exports would slightly expand by around 5 percent to 5.95 million tons in the April-June period as international demand continued to face intense pressure from the slow global economic recovery, Indonesian Palm Oil Association (Gapki) executive director Fadhil Hasan said on Tuesday.

During the January-March period, palm oil exports surged higher than the industry's expectation at 29.45 percent to 5.67 million tons on the back of a moderate rise in demand, according to temporary data issued by Gapki. A 10.19 percent rise was targeted by the industry to help reach 20 million tons of exports throughout this year.

However, exports dropped on a monthly basis from January to March; they plunged by 6.34 percent to 1.92 million tons in February from 2.05 million tons in January. This trend continued to March, which saw shipment decline by 11.46 percent to 1.7 million tons.

'Exports in the upcoming months are likely to keep slowing,' Fadhil said.

India remained the biggest destination for exports, with shipment settling at 1.85 million tons in the January-March period, up by 22.3 percent from the past year.

Analysts have said that exports could get a boost from crude palm oil export tax reduction to
9 percent in May, from 10.5 percent in April, amid Malaysia's move to keep its tax unchanged at 4.5 percent.

The local industry also anticipated that the price of palm oil would not increase much, hovering between US$800 and $850 per metric ton in the second quarter, Fadhil said.

During the first quarter, prices were recorded at between $810 and $885 per ton, according to figures compiled by the association. In years before the crisis, palm oil prices could surpass $1,000 per metric ton.

Despite the considerable rise in volume, lower palm oil prices have taken its toll, causing palm oil producers such as Astra Agro Lestari and Indofood Agri Resources to book less profits.

Palm oil gained, trimming a third monthly decline, amid a rally in soybeans on speculation that global oilseed demand will increase, Bloomberg reported.

The contract for July delivery advanced 0.6 percent to close at 2,286 ringgit (US$751) a metric ton on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives. Futures declined 3.9 percent in April.

Palm oil exports from Malaysia, the world's biggest producer after Indonesia, fell 4.3 percent to 1.31 million tons in April from a month earlier, surveyor Intertek said today.