By Terryn Shiells and Dave Sims, Commodity News Service Canada
WINNIPEG, May 12 – ICE Futures Canada canola contracts finished mixed on Monday, following a day of choppy activity that saw prices move to both sides of unchanged. The July contract was down as much as C$6.00 per tonne during the day, but settled C$3.50 higher.
Some downward pressure came from the losses seen in Chicago soybean and European rapeseed futures, analysts said.
The large Canadian canola supply situation and the firmer Canadian dollar were also bearish for canola prices.
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On the other side, strong end-user demand and worries about delayed seeding in Western Canada this spring were bullish, as was some light fund buying.
Further support came from continued ideas that canola is undervalued compared to other oilseeds.
About 18,020 canola contracts were traded on Monday, which compares with Friday when 20,928 contracts changed hands. Spreading accounted for 14,492 of the trades.
Milling wheat, durum and barley futures were untraded following price revisions after the close on Monday.
SOYBEAN futures at the Chicago Board of Trade ended 13 to 21 cents per bushel lower Monday, as the pace of planting increased across the Midwest.
Moderate to heavy rain is being reported in soybean-growing regions of China. That is expected to aid soil moisture but push back planting timelines, according to an analyst.
This week’s US crop report is expected to show soybean planting is 17 percent complete.
SOYOIL futures were lower following soybeans.
SOYMEAL futures trended lower with subdued demand.
CORN futures in Chicago were five to eight cents lower on Monday as last week’s USDA projections for higher domestic and global supplies continued to buffet the market. Prices for July corn ended below the psychologically important five dollar a bushel mark for the first time in over a week.
Traders were also waiting to see a report, due out after Monday’s close, that is expected to show significant progress has been made in seeding this year’s crop over the past week.
Emerging corn in the western Midwest could be at risk to cold damage this week, said a weather expert.
WHEAT futures in Chicago were five to eight cents per bushel lower Monday but were mixed on the Kansas City market as rainfall in the Southern Plains aided crops just days after the USDA projected higher-than-expected supplies of global wheat inventories.
Wheat futures were also pulled down by managed funds that were eager to avoid further price increases, said an analyst.
Despite the rain, western parts of Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas remained dry, which was supportive.
• Escalating tensions between Ukraine and Russia sent wheat prices to a 14-month high of US$7.44, said an analyst.
• Russia has already surpassed its plans to export 22 million tonnes of grain this agricultural year, according to a Russian researcher.
• Europe is poised to become the world’s top wheat exporter next year, topping the US, for the first time since the 1950’s, according to a report.
ICE Futures Canada settlement prices are in Canadian dollars per metric ton.
