Canola continued to show signs of strength Friday, rising again and taking itself into the upper band of a trading range it has been caught in since July.
More news of bad western Canadian harvest weather helped canola prices and kept them better supported than soybeans.
Soybean oil was relatively strong compared to other North American agricultural futures contracts, but not as strong as canola.
A weakening Canadian dollar did its part in helping canola rise.
Bad harvest conditions continue to plague western Canadian farmers. Snow, sleet, rain and cold are stopping farmers from harvesting and damaging quality. Migratory birds are enjoying the on-field buffets and warmth is needed to dry crops and allow farmers to get back into fields.
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U.S. grains: Soybean futures set two-week high on US weather worry, soyoil rally
Chicago Board of Trade soybean futures touched a two-week high on Friday on worries that heat may threaten U.S. crops and expectations that the country’s biofuel policy would boost demand for soyoil, analysts said.
Sprouting is expected to be a problem for many in-field cereal crops, and mildew, already a widespread quality-destroyer this year, is expected to get worse.
American crops are coming off.
November canola closed at $469.80 per tonne, up $6.20 on the week.
If canola can rise above $475 per tonne and stay there, it would be a sign that the trading range has been broken. November canola hasn’t been above $480 since early July, with significant plunges beneath $460 and only weak attempts to rise above $470.
World equity markets were off, feeling the October blahs.
The weekly canola crush was strong again at 177,792 tonnes, up 1.5 percent and representing an 83.2 percent capacity use.
Domestic crush is running ahead of last year’s pace, but canola exports are slower than last year.
The USDA releases its monthly supply and demand report next week.
Analysts expect the report to show that U.S. farmers would probably harvest 15.060 billion bushels of corn this year, based on an average yield of 173.5 bu. per acre.
Soybean production was seen at 4.286 billion bu. with yields averaging 51.5 bu. per acre, according to the average of estimates by analysts surveyed in a Reuters poll.
The British pound had another bad day, falling precipitously. While a possible knock to national pride and a chance for anti-Brexiters to say “I told you so,” British exports are likely to benefit and support the continued growth that has surprised economists.
Brexit, a crisis at Deutsche Bank, other European economic strains and general worldwide economic limpness have provoked currency volatility. That has created volatility in commodity prices, as well, as their value-holding abilities can be used to hedge or speculate against currency swings.
Canada’s economy created 67,200 jobs in September, far more than expected, though that was fueled by the biggest increase in self-employed workers in more than seven years.
The unemployment rate held at seven percent, as slightly more people were looking for work.
U.S. employment growth unexpectedly slowed for the third straight month. The unemployment rate rose to five percent as more people sought work. However, the news was not bad enough to derail a potential December U.S. interest rate.
Light crude oil nearby futures in New York were down 63 cents to US$49.81 per barrel.
The Canadian dollar at noon was US75.17 cents, down from 75.70 cents the previous trading day. The U.S. dollar at noon was C$1.3304.
For the week, the TSX composite fell 1.1 percent, the Dow and the Nasdaq both fell 0.4 percent and the S&P 500 fell 0.7 percent.
Winnipeg ICE Futures Canada dollars per tonne
Canola Nov 2016 469.80 +1.80 +0.38%
Canola Jan 2017 477.30 +1.70 +0.36%
Canola Mar 2017 482.70 +1.60 +0.33%
Canola May 2017 487.00 +2.00 +0.41%
Canola Jul 2017 488.70 +2.00 +0.41%
Milling Wheat Dec 2016 229.00 unch 0.00%
Milling Wheat Mar 2017 233.00 -1.00 -0.43%
Milling Wheat May 2017 236.00 -1.00 -0.42%
Durum Wheat Dec 2016 282.00 unch 0.00%
Durum Wheat Mar 2017 289.00 unch 0.00%
Durum Wheat May 2017 293.00 unch 0.00%
Barley Dec 2016 132.50 unch 0.00%
Barley Mar 2017 134.50 unch 0.00%
Barley May 2017 135.50 unch 0.00%
American crop prices in cents US/bushel, soybean meal in $US/short ton, soy oil in cents US/pound
Chicago
Soybeans Nov 2016 956.75 -1.75 -0.18%
Soybeans Jan 2017 963.00 -1.75 -0.18%
Soybeans Mar 2017 968.75 -2.25 -0.23%
Soybeans May 2017 974.50 -2.25 -0.23%
Soybeans Jul 2017 979.75 -1.50 -0.15%
Soybeans Aug 2017 978.75 -1.75 -0.18%
Soybean Meal Oct 2016 298.60 -2.90 -0.96%
Soybean Meal Dec 2016 300.20 -2.90 -0.96%
Soybean Meal Jan 2017 301.40 -2.80 -0.92%
Soybean Oil Oct 2016 33.11 +0.01 +0.03%
Soybean Oil Dec 2016 33.31 +0.01 +0.03%
Soybean Oil Jan 2017 33.55 +0.01 +0.03%
Corn Dec 2016 339.75 -0.75 -0.22%
Corn Mar 2017 349.50 -0.75 -0.21%
Corn May 2017 356.75 -0.75 -0.21%
Corn Jul 2017 363.25 -1.25 -0.34%
Corn Sep 2017 370.50 -0.75 -0.20%
Oats Dec 2016 190.75 +3.00 +1.60%
Oats Mar 2017 193.75 +3.25 +1.71%
Oats May 2017 197.50 +2.50 +1.28%
Oats Jul 2017 203.25 +3.50 +1.75%
Oats Sep 2017 212.25 +3.50 +1.68%
Wheat Dec 2016 394.75 -1.00 -0.25%
Wheat Mar 2017 414.75 -2.25 -0.54%
Wheat May 2017 428.75 -2.50 -0.58%
Wheat Jul 2017 440.50 -2.25 -0.51%
Wheat Sep 2017 456.25 -1.75 -0.38%
Minneapolis
Spring Wheat Dec 2016 522.00 -2.75 -0.52%
Spring Wheat Mar 2017 525.25 -2.75 -0.52%
Spring Wheat May 2017 530.50 -2.50 -0.47%
Spring Wheat Jul 2017 536.00 -3.25 -0.60%
Spring Wheat Sep 2017 545.25 -2.00 -0.37%
Kansas City
Hard Red Wheat Dec 2016 403.00 -2.00 -0.49%
Hard Red Wheat Mar 2017 419.50 -2.00 -0.47%
Hard Red Wheat May 2017 430.00 -2.25 -0.52%
Hard Red Wheat Jul 2017 440.50 -2.25 -0.51%
Hard Red Wheat Sep 2017 455.50 -2.25 -0.49%
Chicago livestock futures in US¢/pound (rounded to two decimal places)
Live Cattle (P) Dec 2016 103.05 -0.05 -0.05%
Live Cattle (P) Feb 2017 103.80 +0.13 +0.13%
Feeder Cattle (P) Oct 2016 127.63 -0.20 -0.16%
Feeder Cattle (P) Nov 2016 122.77 -0.01 -0.01%
Feeder Cattle (P) Jan 2017 118.55 -0.23 -0.19%
Lean Hogs (P) Oct 2016 50.68 +0.31 +0.62%
Lean Hogs (P) Dec 2016 42.60 -0.57 -1.32%
Lean Hogs (P) Feb 2017 49.30 +0.42 +0.86%
