By Terryn Shiells and Dave Sims, Commodity News Service Canada
WINNIPEG – ICE Futures Canada canola contracts ended weaker on Thursday, following the sharp losses seen in Chicago soybean futures, analysts said.
Chart-based selling, as the market’s technical bias continues to be pointed lower, also put downward pressure on values.
The large Canadian canola supply situation and ideas that North American oilseed crops are in generally good condition added to the bearish tone.
However, there are still some worries about unseeded acres in parts of Manitoba and Saskatchewan, which helped to limit the losses, as did scale-down end user buying, traders said.
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Some spillover support also came from the advances seen in Chicago soyoil, European rapeseed and Malaysian palm oil futures.
About 18,503 canola contracts were traded on Thursday, which compares with Wednesday when 21,656 contracts changed hands. Spreading accounted for 11,028 of the contracts traded.
Milling wheat, durum and barley futures were untraded and unchanged.
SOYBEAN futures at the Chicago Board of Trade closed nine to 30 cents per bushel lower Thursday, as more rain is forecast to fall in the US Midwest.
About three-quarters of soybeans and corn were either in good or excellent condition as of Sunday, according to the National Weather Service. This could lead to record production of both crops, according to a USDA report issued on Wednesday.
Growing weather is forecast to remain good for soybeans in the coming days, according to a report.
SOYOIL futures were higher on Thursday, with spreading against soymeal a feature.
SOYMEAL futures were lower, following soybeans.
CORN futures in Chicago corrected one to three cents per bushel higher Thursday, after falling to their lowest price levels in four months.
Excessive rainfall in Nebraska and Iowa may have damaged some plants, said an analyst.
Ethanol prices are under pressure but margins are still solid, said an analyst. The strength in crude oil is expected to support blender margins.
WHEAT futures in Chicago were four to eight cents per bushel lower Thursday, but mixed on the Kansas City Board of Trade, as rain forecasts for the southern Great Plains cast downward pressure on values.
The US hard red winter wheat crop has been drought-plagued; however there are concerns about recent rains delaying the harvest.
Harvest is slowly getting underway in Oklahoma and Kansas. They are the two biggest producers of hard-red varieties that are used to make bread.
• Chinese farmers in major wheat growing regions are harvesting this week. More than 50 percent of winter wheat has been taken in, according to that country’s Ministry of Agriculture.
• Egypt has purchased 60,000 tonnes of Romanian wheat for US$248.50 a tonne, that’ s down from the $289.00 a tonne it paid for its last import from the Ukraine on May 16.
• The outlook for Russia’s wheat crop has improved due to cooler and wetter weather.
ICE Futures Canada settlement prices are in Canadian dollars per metric ton.
