The Crude Palm Oil (CPO) futures contract on Bursa Malaysia Derivatives is expected to trade up between RM4,500 and RM5,250 next week in light of the severe flooding in the east coast and low stockpiles, reported the national news agency Bernama.
On a Friday-to-Friday basis, the new spot month December 2024 contract jumped RM448 to RM5,238 per metric tonne (MT), January 2025 contract increased RM411 to RM5,125/MT and February 2025 contract added RM378 to RM5,020/MT.
Nationwide, the number of flood evacuees reached nearly 147,000 as of late evening Nov 301. Kelantan is the worst hit state reporting the highest number of flood victims at 93,158, followed by Terengganu at 41,409.
As reported, the water level of major rivers in Kelantan earlier exceeded the danger threshold. Sungai Kelantan reached 17.92 metres at Kusial Baru, 17.93 metres at Kusial and 5.52 metres at Tambatan Diraja; Sungai Golok reached 11.20 metres at Rantau Panjang, and 4.24 metres at Tumpat; Sungai Melor reached 9.24 metres at Bachok; and lastly Sungai Semerak reached 4.10 metres at Pasir Puteh.
The flood situation in Perlis, Negeri Sembilan and Selangor seemed to have improved as the number of evacuees declined as of 8pm Nov 30.
The total number of flood victims in affected states:
Kelantan: Increased to 93,158, from 80,640 (as of 7:30am Nov 30)
Terengganu: Increased to 41,409, from 35,124 (as of 8am Nov 30)
Kedah: Increased to 8,580, from 7,911 (as of 8am Nov 30)
Melaka: Increased to 293 (8pm, Nov 30), from 229 (no time reference available)
Johor: Increased to 507 (8pm Nov 30), from 425 (as of 8am Nov 30)
Perlis: Decreased to 224 (8pm Nov 30), from 520 (as of 8am Nov 30)
Negeri Sembilan: Decreased to 1,985 (8pm Nov 30), from 2,174 (as of 8:30am Nov 30)
Selangor: Decreased to 229 (8pm Nov 30), from 473 (morning Nov 30)
Grand total of flood victims: 146,3852
Local Chinese daily reported on Sunday that social media especially TikTok has played a crucial role in flood rescue effort as food victims and their families post the latest flood updates and messages to seek help and relief. As reported, the social media posts received positive responses, resulting in the rescue of many stranded flood victims.
Among the flood-informant social media followers was Sufia couldn’t reach her 71-year-old mother trapped in rising water level in Pasir Mas, Kelantan, together with other residents who were not reached by the rescue squad and were short on food.
In desperation, she shared her distress via her TikTok account seeking help from the relief team.
Bernama reported that a later post under the name “Sufia Syahida” shared that her mother was safe and sheltered at a relief centre in Gelang Mas and expressed gratitude to local residents and everyone who had been concerned about her mother’s safety.
Likewise, Shamila also posted message of her distressed parents onto TikTok and caught the attention of the rescue team who later brought her parents to safety. “I am grateful for the power of the internet that my message to seek help was noticed leading to the rescue of my parents. I owe it to the unsung heroes,” said Shamila.
