KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 4 (Reuters) -Malaysian palm oil futures rose on Friday, tracking gains in the Chicago soyoil contract and a weaker ringgit.

The benchmark palm oil contract FCPOc3 for December delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange rose 70 ringgit, or 1.67%, to 4,252 ringgit ($1,004.49) a metric ton during early trade.

The contract has so far gained 3.23% this week.

FUNDAMENTALS

* Soyoil prices on the Chicago Board of Trade BOcv1 were up 0.47%. Dalian's vegetable oil markets were closed for China's Golden Week holiday.

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

* The ringgit MYR=, palm's currency of trade, weakened 0.33% against the dollar, making the commodity cheaper for buyers holding foreign currencies.

* Oil prices rose in early Asian trade, holding on to their strong weekly gains, as investors weighed the Middle East conflict and potential disruptions in crude flows against an amply-supplied global market. O/R

* Stronger crude oil futures make palm a more attractive option for biodiesel feedstock.

* India's palm oil imports in September fell by nearly a third compared to the previous month, hitting a six-month low as a surge in tropical oil prices made it more expensive than rival oils, forcing refiners to postpone purchases, dealers said.

* India on Thursday approved a 101 billion-rupee ($1.2 billion) programme to double edible oil production within seven years, aiming to reduce dependence on costlier imports.

MARKET NEWS

* Asian stocks retreated on Friday while oil prices headed for their sharpest weekly gain in more than a year, as escalating Middle East tensions kept markets on edge ahead of a U.S. jobs report later in the day. MKTS/GLOB

DATA/EVENTS

0300 China Overall Comprehensive Risk Q4

0300 Japan Overall Comprehensive Risk Q4

0830 UK S&P Global PMI: Msc Composite - Output

1230 US Non-Farm Payrolls Sept

1230 US Unemployment Rate Sept

1230 US Average Earnings YY Sept

($1 = 4.2330 ringgit)

Reporting by Ashley Tang

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