Updates prices, comments

By Fransiska Nangoy

JAKARTA, March 18 (Reuters) -Malaysian palm oil futures climbed higher on Monday as stronger rival oils helped boost prices, but smaller-than-expected export volumes and higher output estimates in certain regions capped gains.

The benchmark palm oil contract FCPOc3 for June delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange gained 0.47% to 4,240 ringgit ($899.07) by the afternoon closing.

It rose as much as 1.89% earlier in the session before paring some of its gains.

The contract rose to track Chicago soybean oil and Dalian's palm oil contract's earlier gains, but a high production figure from the Southern Peninsular Palm Oil Millers Association (SPPOMA) weighed on sentiment, a Kuala Lumpur-based trader said.

The SPPOMA estimated production in March 1-15 jumped 38.8% from the same period last month, traders said.

The export of Malaysian palm oil products for March 1-15 rose 8.4% from shipments in February 1-15, independent inspection company AmSpec Agri Malaysia said on Friday, while cargo surveyor Intertek Testing Services reported a 3.3% increase in the same period.

"As shown from earlier export figures, exports were slower than traders' expectations," the trader said.

Dalian's palm oil contract DCPv1 lost 0.22%, reversing some of its 2.28% gains earlier in the session.

Its most-active soyoil contract DBYv1 rose 0.49%, while soyoil prices on the Chicago Board of Trade BOc2 dropped 0.24% after hitting its highest level in nearly three months.

Palm oil is affected by price movements in related oils as they compete for a share in the global vegetable oils market.

Palm oil may break resistance at 4,326 ringgit and rise into a range of 4,378 ringgit to 4,410 ringgit per metric ton, Reuters technical analyst Wang Tao said. TECH/C

($1 = 4.7160 ringgit)

Reporting by Fransiska Nangoy; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips, Sohini Goswami and Shinjini Ganguli

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, 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