Improved seeding weather pressures canola and other crop prices

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Reading Time: 3 minutes

Published: May 6, 2013

It was a crappy day in the crop futures markets Monday and canola didn’t escape the red ink.

Canola has been staying slightly above critical support levels in both old crop and new crop and Monday those support levels were close to being tested.

Some traders see $600 per tonne July canola and $530 November canola to be important psychological support levels which, if breached, could see prices drop substantially further.

“I find that disconcerting,” said Errol Anderson of ProMarket Communications on November canola breaking through $540 per tonne recently.

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“I thought that $540 would hold for a bit. If $530 doesn’t hold, we’re going down to $520.”

The hammering-down of wheat and corn followed the arrival of good weather in U.S. growing areas, alleviating fears that the 2013 crop would experience a lot of trouble going in after recent cold and wet conditions.

Days of good planting weather let the market relax and risk premiums began to evaporate, with U.S. hard red winter wheat losing about 21 cents per bushel Monday, losses great than for either soft red winter or for hard red spring.

Soybeans were down only about half as much as corn in terms of value, a result of the greater anxiety about corn prices reacting more when fear is alleviated.

Good weather also blessed the Canadian prairies, allowing fields to warm and farmers in the warmest, driest parts to begin seeding.

 

Winnipeg ICE Futures Canada dollars per tonne

 

Canola May 2013       629.40       -1.00       -0.16%

Canola Jul 2013       598.80       -2.60       -0.43%

Canola Nov 2013       537.00       -4.30       -0.79%

Canola Jan 2014       538.40       -4.30       -0.79%

Canola Mar 2014       534.70       -4.30       -0.80%

 

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       301.90       unch       0.00%

Durum Wheat Jul 2013       301.90       unch       0.00%

Durum Wheat Oct 2013       294.90       unch       0.00%

 

Barley May 2013       243.50       unch       0.00%

Barley Jul 2013       244.00       unch       0.00%

Barley Oct 2013       194.00       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       1444.5       -10.5       -0.72%

Soybeans Jul 2013       1369.25       -18       -1.30%

Soybeans Aug 2013       1317       -18.25       -1.37%

Soybeans Sep 2013       1249.75       -16       -1.26%

Soybeans Nov 2013       1207.25       -14       -1.15%

Soybeans Jan 2014       1214.75       -14       -1.14%

 

Soybean Meal May 2013       413.1       -4.7       -1.12%

Soybean Meal Jul 2013       401.2       -5.3       -1.30%

Soybean Meal Aug 2013       381.4       -5.8       -1.50%

 

Soybean Oil May 2013       48.69       -0.47       -0.96%

Soybean Oil Jul 2013       48.76       -0.51       -1.04%

Soybean Oil Aug 2013       48.54       -0.47       -0.96%

 

Corn May 2013       678.75       -20.75       -2.97%

Corn Jul 2013       636.5       -24.75       -3.74%

Corn Sep 2013       559.75       -19.5       -3.37%

Corn Dec 2013       538.25       -15.25       -2.76%

Corn Mar 2014       548.75       -14.75       -2.62%

 

Oats May 2013       412.5       -9       -2.14%

Oats Jul 2013       379       -9       -2.32%

Oats Sep 2013       366.25       -4.75       -1.28%

Oats Dec 2013       360       -4       -1.10%

Oats Mar 2014       361.75       -6       -1.63%

 

Wheat May 2013       693       -18.25       -2.57%

Wheat Jul 2013       702.75       -18.25       -2.53%

Wheat Sep 2013       712.5       -18       -2.46%

Wheat Dec 2013       728.75       -16.5       -2.21%

Wheat Mar 2014       743       -15.5       -2.04%

 

Minneapolis

Spring Wheat May 2013       851       -7.5       -0.87%

Spring Wheat Jul 2013       805.75       -13.25       -1.62%

Spring Wheat Sep 2013       804       -15.25       -1.86%

Spring Wheat Dec 2013       811.25       -17.25       -2.08%

Spring Wheat Mar 2014       822       -18.25       -2.17%

 

Kansas City

KCBT Red Wheat May 2013       768.75       -21.25       -2.69%

KCBT Red Wheat Jul 2013       756.75       -21.25       -2.73%

KCBT Red Wheat Sep 2013       767.5       -21.25       -2.69%

KCBT Red Wheat Dec 2013       785       -20.75       -2.58%

KCBT Red Wheat Mar 2014       797.25       -20.75       -2.54%

 

Light crude oil nearby futures in New York rose 55 cents at $96.16 US per barrel.

The Canadian dollar at noon was 99.26 cents US, up from 99.22 cents the previous trading day. The U.S. dollar at noon was $1.0075 Cdn.

In early tallies —

The Toronto Stock Exchange’s S&P/TSX composite index rose 15.89 points, or 0.13 percent, finishing at 12,453.92.

The Dow Jones industrial average dropped 5.07 points, or 0.03 percent, to finish at 14,968.89.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index gained 3.09 points, or 0.19 percent, to close at a record 1,617.51.

The Nasdaq Composite Index gained 14.34 points, or 0.42 percent, to close at 3,392.97.

 

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Ed White

Ed White

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