KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 20 (Reuters) -Malaysian palm oil futures rose for a third straight session and were set for a weekly gain on Friday, tracking strength in rival edible oils, though weaker crude oil prices and a firmer ringgit capped the rise.

The benchmark palm oil contract FCPOc3 for December delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange gained 55 ringgit, or 1.44%, to 3,931 ringgit ($937.74) a metric ton as of 0255 GMT.

The contract has so far gained about 3.1% for the week.

FUNDAMENTALS

* Dalian's most-active soyoil contract DBYcv1 rose 0.87%, while its palm oil contract DCPcv1 added 1.54%. Soyoil prices on the Chicago Board of Trade BOcv1 were up 0.39%.

* Palm oil tracks price movements of rival edible oils, as they compete for a share of the global vegetable oils market.

* Oil prices, which were little changed in early Asian trade on Friday, were on track to end higher for a second straight week following a large cut in U.S. interest rates and declining global stockpiles. O/R

* Brent futures LCOc1 were trading 0.25% lower at $74.69 a barrel at 0236 GMT. Weaker crude oil futures make palm a less attractive option for biodiesel feedstock.

* The ringgit MYR=, palm's currency of trade, strengthened 0.29% against the dollar, making the commodity more expensive for buyers holding foreign currencies and capping its gains.

* Indonesia, the world's biggest palm oil exporter, will introduce a new set of monthly levies in a bid to improve competitiveness against rival edible oils, a regulation published on Thursday by its finance ministry showed.

* Indonesia's palm oil exports are expected to decline this year due to increased domestic consumption because of a higher biodiesel blending mandate and a slight decrease in production, an industry official told Reuters on Thursday.

* Palm oil may fall into a range of 3,817 ringgit to 3,853 ringgit per metric ton, following its failure to break resistance at 3,962 ringgit and a falling trendline, Reuters technical analyst Wang Tao said. TECH/C

MARKET NEWS

* Asian shares extended their rally on Friday, bathing in the afterglow of an outsized interest rate cut in the United States, while the yen was jittery ahead of a monetary policy decision in Japan as traders look for clues about future tightening. MKTS/GLOB

DATA/EVENTS

0600 UK Retail Sales MM Aug

0600 UK Retail Sales Ex-Fuel MM Aug

0600 UK Retail Sales YY Aug

0645 France Business Climate Mfg Sept

0645 France Business Climate Overall Sept

1400 EU Consumer Confid. Flash Sept

Japan JP BOJ Rate Decision

($1 = 4.1920 ringgit)

Reporting by Danial Azhar; Editing by Mrigank Dhaniwala

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, hit F11. 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