Floods keep thousands from homes in Indonesia, Malaysia

JAKARTA, Dec 30 (Reuters) Hundreds of thousands of Indonesians and Malaysians were still in temporary shelters today after floods in recent weeks forced them from their homes, but conditions were gradually improving, officials said.

In Indonesia's Aceh and North Sumatra provinces, where floods and landslides have killed at least 114 people, the displaced total was nearly 272,000 people, Agus Sardiyarso, an official at the disaster management coordination centre in Jakarta, told Reuters.

However, that was well down on the 400,000 reported earlier this week.

The flood situation in Malaysia's worst-hit southern state of Johor was improving but more than 58,000 people were still in relief camps, from 63,000 yesterday, and several key roads were under water, Bernama news agency quoted relief officials as saying.

Malaysia's Meteorological Department, which had issued warnings of fresh rains in the flood-hit regions, said today that heavy rain was unlikely in the coming days.

''There will be only moderate rainfall over Johor and other regions,'' an official told Reuters.

At least 11 people have been killed in the Malaysian floods.

Malaysian palm oil prices rocketed to 8-year highs this week on fears the floods could severely cut supplies.

The floods also raised concerns in Indonesia about flows of palm oil, rubber and coffee to factories and ports. Traders said damaged roads and bridges had hampered delivery.

But in Aceh, home to major offshore natural gas fields and onshore processing plants, output and movement of natural gas were unaffected, industry officials said.

Authorities blamed heavy rains and deforestation for the latest destruction. Legal and illegal logging leaves ground less able to absorb excess water as well as more prone to landslides.

Deforestation destroys the ecosystem and the battle against illegal logging should be stepped-up, Attorney-General Abdul Rahman Saleh told Reuters today.

Asked about a report in the London-based Financial Times that Indonesia's environment minister wanted a moratorium on legal commercial logging in the country, Saleh said if an investigation showed the main cause of the flooding was really deforestation, then a moratorium should be imposed.

REUTERS AKJ BD1653