By Phil Franz-Warkentin, MarketsFarm
WINNIPEG, Jan. 6 (MarketsFarm) – The ICE Futures canola market was stronger on Friday, with chart-based positioning to end the week and spillover support from gains in Chicago soyoil behind some of the buying interest.
Canola exports and the domestic crush are both running ahead of the year-ago pace, according to the latest Canadian Grain Commission data, with that solid end user demand contributing to the gains.
However, European rapeseed and Malaysian palm oil futures were both lower on the day.
Read Also
Canadian Financial Close: Loonie rises, crude oil slips
Glacier FarmMedia | MarketsFarm – The Canadian dollar gained strength on Tuesday, closing at its highest level in 18 days. The loonie…
Strength in the Canadian dollar also tempered the upside in canola, with the currency trading back above 74 U.S. cents.
About 28,313 canola contracts traded on Friday, which compares with Thursday when 22,499 contracts changed hands. Spreading accounted for 19,276 of the contracts traded.
SOYBEAN futures at the Chicago Board of Trade were stronger on Friday, as solid monthly jobs data out of the United States led to increased risk appetite in the global financial markets with some of that buying interest spilling into the grains and oilseeds.
The ongoing drought concerns in Argentina were also supportive. The latest reports out of the country pegged the soybean crop at only eight per cent good to excellent, with seeding well behind normal.
Weekly U.S. soybean export sales of 721,000 tonnes were in line with expectations, with an additional 132,000 tonnes to unknown destinations also reported.
CORN was also higher, but lagged beans to the upside as losses in wheat pulled on the market in the other direction.
Weekly U.S. corn export sales of 319,000 tonnes came in below expectations and marked the smallest sales in eight weeks. However, the U.S. Department of Agriculture did announce private sales of just over 100,000 tonnes of old and new crop corn to Mexico this morning.
The USDA releases updated supply/demand estimates on Jan. 12, with positioning ahead of the reports a feature.
WHEAT was lower across the board. Weekly U.S. wheat export sales of only 49,000 tonnes were a marketing year low.
Rising production estimates out of Australia were also bearish, with the latest forecast out of the country pegging the wheat crop at a record large 42 million tonnes.
