Canola futures eased a bit Monday, but stayed above the $490 per tonne level, the point at which it’s been static for days.
“Canola remains kind of trapped,” said Ken Ball, broker with P.I. Financial in Winnipeg.
“But it has been trading very strong in relative value.”
Canola’s chart flatness is a much better situation than the sliding value of soybean oil, which has been on a tumble since the beginning of September. Soybean oil has broken down to levels last seen in June, before a strong summer.
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There is carry in the canola market, with January futures almost seven dollars above November.
Most other crops fell on Monday. Spring wheat fell the hardest, with Minneapolis futures falling 12 cents per bushel.
Harvest continues to trundle along. Wet weather has slowed things in certain pockets for a few days, while farmers in blessed with sunshine and blue skies keep combines rolling.
Wheat is still a mystery in the northern United States and in Western Canada, as farmers, marketers and grain companies try to get a handle on protein levels, quality and overall yields.
Canola’s strength recently has had something to do with the weather, considering that some believe 25-30 percent of the Canadian crop is still in the field. Wet and cool weather has been a challenge for growers, especially in Alberta.
US SHIPPING PROBLEMS
U.S. farmers are running out of options for their just-harvested corn and soybeans as delays on the Mississippi River, the main conduit for crops to export markets, cause shipping backlogs, while grain storage on the river’s banks is filling up, Reuters reported.
Low river levels and back-ups at ageing locks have slowed navigation on the Mississippi and its tributaries and driven the cost of hauling Midwestern crops to Gulf Coast export terminals to near-record highs.
As newly harvested supplies reach the market, elevators with barges on hand are prioritizing loading soybeans while storing corn if they have space, traders and barge brokers said.
US HARVEST
The USDA said the U.S. soybean harvest was 22 percent complete by Sunday, behind an average of trade estimates for 25 percent and the five-year average of 26 percent. The corn harvest was only 17 percent complete, lagging the five-year average of 26 percent.
OUTSIDE MARKETS
Light crude oil nearby futures in New York were down $1.09 cents at US$50.58 per barrel.
In the afternoon, the Canadian dollar was trading around US79.92 cents, down from 80.15 cents the previous trading day. The U.S. dollar was C$1.2513.
The Toronto Stock Exchange’s S&P/TSX composite index ended up 70.06 points, or 0.45 percent, at 15,705.00.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 152.51 points, or 0.68 percent, to 22,557.6, the S&P 500 gained 9.76 points, or 0.39 percent, to 2,529.12 and the Nasdaq Composite added 20.76 points, or 0.32 percent, to 6,516.72.
Winnipeg ICE Futures Canada dollars per tonne
Canola Nov 17 491.50s -0.90 -0.18%
Canola Jan 18 498.20s -0.70 -0.14%
Canola Mar 18 503.30s -0.30 -0.06%
Canola May 18 505.70s -0.20 -0.04%
Canola Jul 18 506.40s -0.30 -0.06%
Milling Wheat Oct 17 223.00s -5.00 -2.19%
Milling Wheat Dec 17 225.00s -6.00 -2.60%
Milling Wheat Mar 18 231.00s -6.00 -2.53%
Durum Wheat Oct 17 279.00s -1.00 -0.36%
Durum Wheat Dec 17 281.00s -3.00 -1.06%
Barley Oct 17 145.00s unch unch
Barley Dec 17 148.00s unch unch
Barley Mar 18 151.00s unch unch
American crop prices in cents US/bushel, soybean meal in $US/short ton, soy oil in cents US/pound. Prices are displayed with fractions (2/8, 4/8, and 6/8) instead of decimals. -2 equals .25, -4 equals .50, -6 equals .75. The “s” means it is the settlement.
Chicago
Soybeans Nov 17 957-2s -11-0 -1.14%
Soybeans Jan 18 967-6s -10-6 -1.10%
Soybeans Mar 18 977-0s -10-6 -1.09%
Soybeans May 18 985-6s -10-0 -1.00%
Soybeans Jul 18 993-2s -9-2 -0.92%
Soybean Meal Oct 17 309.1s -2.4 -0.77%
Soybean Meal Dec 17 313.6s -2.2 -0.70%
Soybean Meal Jan 18 315.7s -2.1 -0.66%
Soybean Oil Oct 17 32.28s -0.29 -0.89%
Soybean Oil Jan 18 32.70s -0.29 -0.88%
Corn Dec 17 351-4s -3-6 -1.06%
Corn Mar 18 364-2s -3-4 -0.95%
Corn May 18 373-0s -3-2 -0.86%
Corn Jul 18 380-6s -3-0 -0.78%
Corn Sep 18 387-6s -2-2 -0.58%
Oats Dec 17 252-4s +1-2 +0.50%
Oats Mar 18 256-4s +1-2 +0.49%
Oats May 18 255-2s +1-0 +0.39%
Oats Jul 18 251-2s +1-2 +0.50%
Oats Sep 18 251-2s +1-2 +0.50%
Wheat Dec 17 444-6s -3-4 -0.78%
Wheat Mar 18 463-2s -3-2 -0.70%
Wheat May 18 476-4s -2-6 -0.57%
Wheat Jul 18 489-0s -1-6 -0.36%
Wheat Sep 18 504-4s -1-4 -0.30%
Minneapolis
Spring Wheat Dec 17 611-4s -12-2 -1.96%
Spring Wheat Mar 18 625-0s -12-0 -1.88%
Spring Wheat Jul 18 635-0s -10-0 -1.55%
Spring Wheat Sep 18 634-4s +0-2 +0.04%
Kansas City
Hard Red Wheat Dec 17 439-2s -3-4 -0.79%
Hard Red Wheat Mar 18 456-6s -3-4 -0.76%
Hard Red Wheat May 18 470-4s -3-4 -0.74%
Hard Red Wheat Jul 18 487-6s -3-0 -0.61%
Hard Red Wheat Sep 18 506-2s -2-6 -0.54%
Chicago livestock futures in US¢/pound, Pit trade
Live Cattle Oct 17 107.825s -1.275 -1.17%
Live Cattle Dec 17 113.425s -1.825 -1.58%
Live Cattle Feb 18 117.225s -1.400 -1.18%
Feeder Cattle Oct 17 150.350s -1.875 -1.23%
Feeder Cattle Nov 17 151.600s -2.400 -1.56%
Feeder Cattle Jan 18 149.400s -2.125 -1.40%
Lean Hogs Oct 17 57.250s +1.850 +3.34%
Lean Hogs Dec 17 61.975s +2.025 +3.38%
Lean Hogs Feb 18 67.075s +2.025 +3.11%
