Most crop futures closed lower Friday capping a bad week when July canola dropped $9.10 per tonne.
The July contract closed at $581.10 per tonne, down $3.
U.S. crop markets traded higher early on a bounce from recent weakness and a lower U.S. dollar. Winnipeg canola was also up early on spillover strength overnight from palm oil. Its discount to soybean oil has widened to the most in two years, raising expectations that palm will gain market share.
But the canola market turned lower later, pushed down by falling soybeans, which were pressured down by sharply lower crude oil prices.
Oil fell on a report showing U.S. manufacturing is slowing, following a similar report the day before. Oil fell about seven percent during the week.
Investors are generally selling commodities and shifting money into safe havens in reaction to worries about the slowdown in the U.S. economy and Greece’s debt worries.
The decline in canola was not nearly as bad as the fall in other crops.
Chicago wheat dropped 11.6 percent over the week , corn fell about 11 percent, Minneapolis wheat about 10 percent and soybeans four percent.
Heavy rain today in many parts of southern Saskatchewan might have damaged some crops, but the rain was welcome in the northern portions of the grain belt.
The Canadian Oilseed Processors Association said members crushed 108,604 tonnes of canola in the week ending June 15, an increase of 25.6 percent.
Winnipeg (per tonne)
Canola Jul 11 $581.10, down $3.00
Canola Nov 11 $583.10, down $2.40
Canola Jan 12 $589.00, down $2.50
Canola Mar 12 $593.90, down $2.80
The previous day’s best basis was $8 under the July contract according to ICE Futures Canada in Winnipeg.
The July contract’s 14-day Relative Strength Index was 46. 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 $13.33, down 17.5 cents
Soybeans Aug 11 $13.335, down 16.5
Soybeans Nov 11 $13.3325, down 17.0
Corn Jul 11 $7.0025, down 1.25
Corn Dec 11 $6.60, up 7.0
Oats Jul 11 $3.515, down 4.5
Oats Dec 11 $3.695, down 3.25
Minneapolis (per bushel)
Spring Wheat Jul 11 $8.9725, down 3.0 cents
Spring Wheat Sep 11 $8.8175, up 4.0
Spring Wheat Dec 11 $8.8475, up 4.25
Light crude oil nearby futures in New York fell $1.94 to $93.01 US per barrel.
The Canadian dollar at noon was $1.0207 US, up from $1.0160 the previous trading day. The U.S. dollar at noon was 97.97 cents Cdn.
The Toronto Stock Exchange composite index closed down 62.14 points, or 0.5 percent, at 12,790.99. It was its weakest close since Nov. 16. Research in Motion, the maker of the Blackberry, reported weak quarterly results and lowered its profit projection for the rest of the year.
The Standard and Poor’s 500 index was up 3.86 points, or 0.30 percent, to finish unofficially at 1,271.50.
For the week, the TSX composite fell 2.2 percent. The Dow gained 0.4 percent and the S&P 500 edged up 0.04 percent, ending a six-week losing streak. The Nasdaq fell one percent.
