By Terryn Shiells and Phil Franz-Warkentin, Commodity News Service Canada
WINNIPEG, Oct. 23 – ICE Futures Canada canola contracts ended stronger on Thursday, breaking above resistance of C$420 per tonne in the most active January contract. Prices were moving higher, following the sharp rally seen in Chicago soybean futures, analysts said.
Strength in Chicago soyoil, and outside equity markets, was adding to the bullish tone, brokers noted.
Further support came from signs that the short term technical bias is now pointed higher for canola.
However, light farmer selling and profit taking at the highs of the day were also bearish.
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About 29,679 contracts traded on Thursday, which compares with Wednesday when 30,926 contracts changed hands.
Milling wheat and durum were untraded and unchanged. Barley futures saw 25 December contracts trade at sharply higher prices.
SOYBEAN futures at the Chicago Board of Trade were up 15 to 30 cents per bushel on Thursday, with solid weekly export demand behind much of the buying interest.
The USDA reported weekly soybean export sales of 2.167 million tonnes; which was well above market expectations. The USDA also reported an additional sale of 118,000 tonnes to China, for delivery during the current crop year.
The slow seeding pace in Brazil, due to dry conditions, provided some further support. However, forecasts are turning more favourable for the South American country.
The advancing US harvest also tempered the upside potential in soybeans, according to participants.
SOYOIL futures were up on Thursday, finding some spillover support from the advances in soybeans.
SOYMEAL futures were up on Thursday, posting the biggest gains of the soy complex as good demand and tight nearby supplies added to the strength.
CORN futures in Chicago were up four to seven cents per bushel on Thursday, with good export demand also a supportive feature in the corn market.
The USDA reported weekly US corn export sales of 1.031 million tonnes, which was at the high end of trade expectations.
The slow harvest pace was also a bit supportive, although the record production prospects limited the advances.
WHEAT futures in Chicago were up four to five cents per bushel on Thursday, finding some spillover support from the gains in corn and soybeans.
A lack of significant farmer hedges, with the US spring wheat harvest virtually complete, contributed to the firmer tone in wheat, according to analysts. Chart based buying and weather concerns elsewhere in the world, including Australia and Russia, were also supportive.
– Russian officials said the country’s wheat crop was in “even worse” shape than seen in 2009, when cold winter weather was followed by dry summer conditions and production was down sharply. This year, dry conditions have helped with winter wheat seedings, but the lack of moisture is raising concerns over germination ahead of winter.
– Net weekly US wheat export sales came in at 299,400 tonnes, which was down by 34% from the previous week, according to the USDA.
ICE Futures Canada settlement prices are in Canadian dollars per metric ton.
