Lingering downward pressure from Thursday’s USDA reports pushed old crop canola futures lower but the cold spring and slow start to field work in western Canada supported new crop canola.
May canola closed at $620.10, down $5.40 while November closed at $555, up 50 cents.
Corn fell for a second day, notching the biggest two-day fall since mid 1996, driven lower by the USDA stocks report that found more corn on hand March 1 than was expected.
Falling corn pushed wheat and old crop soybeans lower.
Soyoil futures were static, supported by firm cash values amid a slowing U.S. crush pace and increased demand for biodiesel.
Read Also
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.
• Cold weather this week in the U.S. Midwest and showers in the Plains hard red winter wheat region will slow early corn plantings, but also help boost wheat production prospects, agricultural meteorologist Kyle Tapley of MDA Weather Services told Reuters on Monday.
• The USDA issued its first national winter wheat (hard and soft types) condition report of the year. It said 30 percent was very poor to poor (12 percent last year), 36 percent fair (30 percent last year) and 34 percent good to excellent (58 percent last year.)
Hard red winter areas are fairing worse than soft areas.
Kansas is similar to the national averages, but Texas is 49 percent poor to very poor. Colorado is 42 percent poor to very poor, Oklahoma is 33 percent in the same category, Nebraska 49 percent and South Dakota 76 percent.
• The state report for Kansas, the largest hard red winter wheat producer, said the crop was 13 percent jointed, behind 57 percent a year ago and 22 percent average.
The condition of the crop was rated as 10 percent very poor (11 percent last week), 19 percent poor (20 percent), 40 percent fair (40 percent), 29 percent good (27 percent), and two percent excellent (two percent).
Winnipeg ICE Futures Canada dollars per tonne
Canola May 2013 620.10 -5.40 -0.86%
Canola Jul 2013 606.40 -2.40 -0.39%
Canola Nov 2013 555.00 +0.50 +0.09%
Canola Jan 2014 555.50 +0.50 +0.09%
Canola Mar 2014 552.00 +0.50 +0.09%
Milling Wheat May 2013 292.00 unch 0.00%
Milling Wheat Jul 2013 294.00 unch 0.00%
Milling Wheat Oct 2013 294.00 unch 0.00%
Durum Wheat May 2013 311.00 unch 0.00%
Durum Wheat Jul 2013 314.00 unch 0.00%
Durum Wheat Oct 2013 299.30 unch 0.00%
Barley May 2013 243.50 unch 0.00%
Barley Jul 2013 244.00 unch 0.00%
Barley Oct 2013 244.00 unch 0.00%
American crop prices in cents US/bushel, soybean meal in $US/short ton, soy oil in cents US/pound
Chicago
Soybeans May 2013 1390.75 -14 -1.00%
Soybeans Jul 2013 1372.25 -13.25 -0.96%
Soybeans Aug 2013 1339 -7.75 -0.58%
Soybeans Sep 2013 1283.5 -1.5 -0.12%
Soybeans Nov 2013 1252.75 +1.25 +0.10%
Soybeans Jan 2014 1258.25 +2 +0.16%
Soybean Meal May 2013 398.5 -6.1 -1.51%
Soybean Meal Jul 2013 395.2 -5.3 -1.32%
Soybean Meal Aug 2013 382.3 -3.2 -0.83%
Soybean Oil May 2013 50.06 -0.05 -0.10%
Soybean Oil Jul 2013 50.32 -0.03 -0.06%
Soybean Oil Aug 2013 50.37 +0.03 +0.06%
Corn May 2013 642.25 -53 -7.62%
Corn Jul 2013 626.75 -49.25 -7.29%
Corn Sep 2013 551 -12 -2.13%
Corn Dec 2013 535.5 -3 -0.56%
Corn Mar 2014 545.25 -3 -0.55%
Oats May 2013 376.25 -20 -5.05%
Oats Jul 2013 371.25 -20 -5.11%
Oats Sep 2013 358.25 -20 -5.29%
Oats Dec 2013 345.75 -15.25 -4.22%
Oats Mar 2014 349.5 -20 -5.41%
Chicago soft red winter
Wheat May 2013 664 -23.75 -3.45%
Wheat Jul 2013 669 -22 -3.18%
Wheat Sep 2013 678.25 -21 -3.00%
Wheat Dec 2013 692.75 -20.5 -2.87%
Wheat Mar 2014 707.25 -19.25 -2.65%
Minneapolis hard red spring
Spring Wheat May 2013 765.75 -14.5 -1.86%
Spring Wheat Jul 2013 764 -16.5 -2.11%
Spring Wheat Sep 2013 765.75 -15 -1.92%
Spring Wheat Dec 2013 777 -12.5 -1.58%
Spring Wheat Mar 2014 793.25 -10.75 -1.34%
Kansas City hard red winter
KCBT Red Wheat May 2013 709.75 -17 -2.34%
KCBT Red Wheat Jul 2013 716.75 -15.5 -2.12%
KCBT Red Wheat Sep 2013 728.75 -15 -2.02%
KCBT Red Wheat Dec 2013 745 -14.5 -1.91%
KCBT Red Wheat Mar 2014 756.75 -15 -1.94%
Light crude oil nearby futures in New York were down 16 cents at $97.07 US per barrel.
The Canadian dollar at noon was 98.36 cents US, down from 98.46 cents the previous trading day. The U.S. dollar at noon was $1.0167 Cdn.
U.S. factory activity grew at the slowest rate in three months in March, suggesting the economy lost some momentum at the end of the first quarter.
In very light volume the Toronto Stock Exchange’s S&P/TSX composite index closed down 54.76 points, or 0.43 percent, at 12,695.14.
The Dow Jones industrial average fell 5.69 points, or 0.04 percent, at 14,572.85.
The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index dropped 7.02 points, or 0.45 percent, at 1,562.17.
The Nasdaq Composite Index was down 28.35 points, or 0.87 percent, at 3,239.17.
