Crop markets on Thursday again sailed against negative economic news to close higher.
Rising concerns that bad spring weather will prevent farmers from seeding all the acres they hoped to lifted grain and oilseed futures.
July Canola closed at $595.40 per tonne, up $4.50.
Canola is supported by wet conditions in the western Prairies, dry soil in northwest Saskatchewan and northeastern Alberta and recent frosts that might have damaged seedlings.
Canola also had support from soybeans, which rose on worries about reduced acreage in the U.S. due to wet fields.
Wheat had support from a downgrade in a forecast for Ukraine exports and dry weather in parts of Ukraine and Russia. There also was talk that the rapid increase in domestic Russian wheat prices since the government announed it would lift the export ban could cause Moscow to bring in new measures to slow exports and slow the price rise.
Saskatchewan Agriculture reported that 70 percent of seeding was complete as of May 30 with the best progress in northern areas and the poorest performance in the south and southeast.
The total was better than last year’s 59 percent but still off the five-year average of 81 percent.
The wider market was still depressed after Wednesday’s reports on the U.S. economy, which were disappointing.
U.S. manufacturing growth slid in May to its slowest pace since September 2009; U.S. companies hired far fewer workers than expected last month; and manufacturing output slowed to its lowest since 2009.
There are also signs that China’s efforts to control inflation are slowing the economy there.
Canola Jul 11 $595.40, up $4.50
Canola Nov 11 $599.40, up $4.80
Canola Jan 12 $607.40, up $5.00
Canola Mar 12 $614.00, up $4.90
The previous day’s best basis was $15 under the July contract according to ICE Futures Canada in Winnipeg.
The July contract’s 14-day Relative Strength Index was 61. The rule of thumb is an RSI of 30 indicates an over sold market and 70 indicates an over bought market.
Western Barley Jul 11 $205, unchanged
Chicago (per bushel)
Soybeans Jul 11 $14.07, up 20.75 cents
Soybeans Aug 11 $14.005, up 18.5
Soybeans Nov 11 $13.9275, up 18.0
Corn Jul 11 $7.665, up 8.0
Corn Dec 11 $6.95, up 15.5
Oats Jul 11 $3.80, down 3.0
Oats Dec 11 $3.955, down 3.5
Minneapolis (per bushel)
Spring Wheat Jul 11 $10.195, up 14.0 cents
Spring Wheat Sep 11 $9.8725, up 12.0
Spring Wheat Dec 11 $9.8975, up 13.5
Light crude oil nearby futures in New York rose 11 cents to $100.40 US per barrel.
The Canadian dollar at noon was $1.0211 US, down from $1.0294 the previous trading day. The U.S. dollar at noon was 97.93 cents Cdn.
The Toronto Stock Exchange composite index closed down 8.38 points at 13,519.50.
The Standard and Poor’s 500 index fell 1.61 points, or 0.12 percent, to close at 1,312.94.
