Canola futures edged higher on a late day rally fueled by short covering.
Earlier in the day prices had been lower, pressured down by elevator hedging.
Oilseed prices in recent weeks have moved in a narrow range with little fundamental news to cause a break out. The market is still expecting a bumper South American soybean harvest.
The loonie was up slightly but the U.S. dollar was showing strength against other currencies.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture is holding its annual outlook conference this week. It forecasts U.S. farmers will seed 89 million acres of corn (86.5 million last year), 77 million acres of soybeans (77.5 million last year), and wheat sowings at 53.8 million acres (59.1 million last year). The projections, which imply a record corn crop and second largest soybean crop, are roughly in line with private forecasters.
The first USDA survey of farmers’ seeding intentions comes out in March.
March canola rose $1.20 to close at $384.30 per tonne on 7,513 trades.
May rose $1.20 to $390.40 on 10,332 trades. New crop November rose $1 to $402.90 per tonne on 778 trades.
The Canadian dollar at the close Thursday was 96.02 cents US, up from 95.68 cents the previous trading day. The U.S. dollar closed at $1.0414 Cdn.
The Winnipeg March barley contract fell $2.20 to $140.30 per tonne with 12 trades. May fell $1.10 to $150 on one trade.
March soybeans fell 3.5 cents to $9.48 US per bushel. November soybeans fell half a cent to $9.3125 per bu.
Light crude oil in New York for March delivery closed at $78.77 US per barrel, up $1.44.
