KUALA LUMPUR: BATU KAWAN BHD was the biggest gainer among PLANTATION players on Jan 6, continuing its upward trend to hit an 18-month high of RM10.62 in intra-day trading as crude palm oil (CPO) climbed further.

The counter closed eight sen higher at RM10.58. Batu Kawan has been climbing steadily over the past two weeks, gaining some 4.3% during the period. Meantime, March CPO delivery closed RM20 higher, a gain of 0.75%, at RM2,702 per tonne.

Batu Kawan, whose core business is money lending, chemicals and transportation services, has stakes in the plantation sector through its 46.45% stake in Malaysia’s third-biggest palm oil producer KUALA LUMPUR KEPONG BHD (KLK).

“Batu Kawan is a proxy for KLK. KLK has been doing quite well and Batu Kawan is just playing catching up,” an analyst from a bank-backed research house told The Edge Financial Daily.

Other plantation counters including KLK were flat despite gains in the FBM KLCI which climbed 4.93 points to close above the 1,290 level at 1,293.17.

Among the losers, IOI CORPORATION BHD shed six sen to RM5.54, IJM Plantation Bhd lost three sen to RM2.57 and Genting Plantations Bhd slipped two sen to RM6.40. Meanwhile, KLK, KULIM (M) BHD and FAR EAST HOLDINGS BHD closed unchanged at RM16.84, RM7.60 and RM6.75 respectively.

PPB GROUP BHD added six sen to RM16.30 and the world’s largest listed plantations company SIME DARBY BHD added one sen just before the closing bell to RM9.10.

“It is basically a lot of liquidity play as investors are generally expecting a volatile year. Hence people would take profit and come back again given the trading environment,” the analyst said.

The analyst said plantation stocks have been going quite strong and would continue to head north into the festive season. “But I expect dips in between.”

A recent research report from ECM Libra noted that share prices of plantation companies had remained “flattish” despite the climb in CPO prices.

“CPO climbed 7% from November while only KLK saw capital appreciation during the month.

“We continue to cite that expensive valuations are limiting upside in the sector hence reinforcing our neutral call on the sector,” the research house said. It added that exports for December were expected to be down some 10% to 15%, according to cargo surveyors.