Palm falls to near 25-week lows on inventory worries, weaker crude

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 5 (Reuters) - Malaysian palm oil futures fell to near a 25-week low on Thursday, as concerns over potentially larger-than-expected stocks and output, alongside weaker crude and rival vegetable oils, dampened sentiment.

The benchmark palm oil contract for January delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange slid 84 ringgit, or 1.87%, to 4,412 ringgit ($1,086.43) a metric ton by the midday break, extending losses for a fourth straight session.

The market continued its bearish stint amid fears of a larger inventory increase as production is expected to rise more than the recent estimates, said Anilkumar Bagani, head of research at Mumbai-based vegetable oil broker Sunvin Group.

Indonesia may also accelerate palm oil exports over the next two months to benefit from lower export tax brackets and avoid a potential Danantara transaction fee on export registrations from January, Bagani added.

Malaysia's palm oil inventories were projected to have risen 6.8% from September's record 3.51 million tons to 3.75 million tons, a Reuters survey showed. The Malaysian Palm Oil Board is expected to release its October supply and demand data on November 10.

Oil prices fell for a fourth day on expectations that the losses US President Donald Trump's Republican Party suffered in congressional elections this week may reduce the risk of further escalation of the US-Israeli war with Iran.O/R

Weaker crude oil futures make palm a less attractive option for biodiesel feedstock.

Dalian's most-active soyoil contract fell 0.45%, while its palm oil contract shed 1.4%. Soyoil prices on the Chicago Board of Trade were down 1.23%.

Palm oil tracks the price movements of rival edible oils, as it competes for a share of the global vegetable oils market.

The ringgit , palm's currency of trade, strengthened 0.37% against the dollar, making the commodity slightly more expensive for buyers holding foreign currencies.

($1 = 4.0610 ringgit)