If you want to see two examples of demand creation and destruction that helped first raise up then hammer down crop and commodity prices, just look at the BDI and two big ethanol plants in North Dakota. The BDI is the Baltic Dry Index, which is a measure of what it costs to rent a […] Read more
Ed White
Stories by Ed White
February: friend or foe
January’s almost done and it’s been a month of flatness in the crop futures markets. Soybeans came in about $9.80 and are going out near that level. Corn’s down a bit, from $4.10 to $3.80, but that’s a lot more stable than the huge fall from last summer or the big rebound in December. Canola […] Read more
Canola likely trading in new range
BRANDON – Canola prices have probably moved into a new trading range, but it’s too early to know exactly what its limits are, two analysts told farmers attending Manitoba Ag Days. Somewhere between the peak of early 2008 and the early December low is where canola prices will range, barring some major supply increase or […] Read more
New lows coming: analyst
Don’t count on the December lows holding, says Jeffrey Kennedy. The American analyst is convinced the low grain futures prices set in December were simply another step toward the bottom, and the present rally will reverse soon. “We will take out the December low. There’s no question, as far as I’m concerned,” said Kennedy, the […] Read more
Cattle need more than good looks
BRANDON – When it comes to picking his ladies of the pasture, Duane Thompson prefers the plain Janes to the eye-grabbing hotties. Sometimes being good looking means being pretty useless in the real world, the farmer from Kelliher, Sask., told producers at Manitoba Ag Days. “It’s like going to L.A. and picking up Paris Hilton […] Read more
Bison market’s dark days thing of the past: producer
BRANDON – Bison no longer seem like the next big thing. There’s little talk about the industry’s potential and little excitement among average producers about getting into the business. That makes sense, considering the bison industry nearly imploded after exports were banned following the discovery of BSE in Canada in 2003 and producers encountered severe […] Read more
Soy insurance increases in Man.
Soybeans are set to roll up and out of the Red River Valley to the north, east and west. Manitoba crop insurance will now cover losses on the crop outside the province’s heat belt, and producer representatives think that will result in soybeans growing in places they have never been before. “It’ll give farmers some […] Read more
The Uglier Scenario (not so ugly, maybe)
I’ve spent a lot of time recently studying the crop markets of the 1970s to see how they actually behaved in that golden period of high commodity prices. I’ve done that because one of the most compelling arguments of the past decade is that we’re in the midst of a long term commodity boom like […] Read more
Might not want to salute this one
There’s a pretty cool formation forming in oats futures on the Chicago Board of Trade. It’s pretty cool, and rather disturbing. It’s a “pennant,” which is related to “flag” formations in technical analysis. Basically, it’s when the highs and lows form converging lines, following a clear rise or fall in prices. (A flag is a […] Read more
Wonderwall of Worry
Are crops going to rise or fall into spring planting time in North America? That’s something I’m wondering about as I ponder South American weather, North American crop competition and a longstanding equity market observation. South American weather has been having an effect on the market, as dryness has worried buyers that the Argentine and […] Read more
