By Phil Franz-Warkentin, Commodity News Service Canada
March 19, 2014
Winnipeg – ICE Canada canola contracts were stronger Wednesday morning, finding some spillover support from the gains in the CBOT soy complex and from the weaker tone in the Canadian dollar.
Malaysian palm oil and European rapeseed futures were also up in overnight activity.
The Canadian dollar was trading at its weakest levels in over four-and-a-half years. The softer currency makes canola more attractive to international buyers and also supports crush margins. Commercial demand was said to be showing some signs of improving, although the logistics issues that slowed grain movement over the winter remain a bearish influence overall.
A pickup in farmer selling, as producers take advantage of the recent strength in the canola market, also tempered the move higher, according to participants.
About 7,500 canola contracts had traded as of 8:49 CDT.
Milling wheat, durum, and barley futures were all untraded after seeing some price revisions following Tuesday’s close.
Prices in Canadian dollars per metric ton at 8:49 CDT: