MUMBAI, Feb 17 (Reuters) - India's oilseed futures shrugged off early gains to end lower on Wednesday on a drop in meal exports, but soyoil ended higher tracking firmness in Malaysan palm oil, analysts said. Meal exports are not picking up as Indian millers are charging hefty premium compared to supplies form other competing countries like Brazil and Argentina, said Alimuhammad Lakdawala, analyst at Anand Rathi Commodities Ltd. India's January oilmeal exports slumped 32 percent from a year earlier, falling for the third straight month, due to weak demand from Vietnam, South Korea, Indonesia, Japan and Thailand, the Solvent Extractors' Association of India said on Feb. 5. See [ID:nSGE61407U] The March soybean contract NSBH0 on the National Commodity and Derivatives Exchange ended down 0.47 percent at 2,139.5 rupees per 100 kg, while March soyoil NSOH0 finished 0.15 percent higher at 463 rupees per 10 kg. The rapeseed April contract NRSJ0 ended down 1.3 percent at 483.2 rupees per 20 kg on weak spot demand. In early trade soybean and rapeseed were trading higher tracking overnight gains in overseas markets, analysts said. U.S. soybean jumped to three-week highs on Tuesday as the dollar fell. Malaysian palm oil futures rose to more than a five-week high on Wednesday after the Lunar New Year holidays as traders priced in earlier gains from crude oil and rival soyoil. See [ID:nSGE61G06C] India's vegetable oil imports fell 1.8 percent in January from a year earlier, as high stocks and rising prices discouraged buying after record shipments last year, when India toppled China as the world's biggest buyer. See [ID:nSGE61E06F] (Reporting by Rajendra Jadhav; Editing by Ramya Venugopal)

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