By Terryn Shiells and Marney Blunt, Commodity News Service Canada
ICE Futures Canada canola contracts ended firmer on Monday, following the gains seen in Chicago soyoil futures, analysts said.
Further support came from worries about cold temperatures possibly causing damage to canola crops in parts of Alberta and Saskatchewan over the weekend.
Steady demand for the commodity added to the bullish tone, as did the weaker Canadian dollar and oversold price sentiment.
However, ongoing expectations of record large US soybean production and weakness in Chicago soybean futures limited the advances.
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The canola market’s technical bias remains pointed lower, which also tempered the gains, brokers said.
About 13,565 contracts traded on Monday, which compares with Friday when 8,508 contracts changed hands. Spreading accounted for 5,088 of the trades.
Milling wheat, durum and barley futures were untraded, though the Exchange adjusted wheat prices following Monday’s close.
SOYBEAN futures on the Chicago Board of Trade were lower on Monday as rainfall forecast for certain areas of the U.S. Midwest will improve crop prospects, analysts say.
Parts of Iowa are expected to receive as much as five inches of precipitation, according to Commodity Weather Group. Last week’s ProFarmer crop tour had reported some dry soybean fields in that area. Northern Iowa and southern Minnesota has received minimal rainfall in the past 30 days, according to the National Weather Service.
Earlier in the month, the U.S. Department of Agriculture had forecast soybean production at 3.82 billion bushels with average yields at 45.4 bushels an acre. Both of which would be record numbers, traders say.
SOYOIL futures in Chicago closed higher on Monday.
SOYMEAL futures closed lower on Monday, keeping the spread with soybean oil.
CORN futures in Chicago were lower on Monday, as rainfall forecast for the U.S. Midwest was also a bearish factor, brokers say.
Along with the soybean crops, the rainfall forecast in parts of Iowa could be beneficial to the dry corn fields in the area, which hasn’t received much moisture in the past month.
Corn production is forecast at 14 billion bushels on yields of 167.4 bushels an acre, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. This would be a record production and yield for U.S. corn. Estimates from the ProFarmer crop tour were slightly higher at 14.09 billion bushels on yields of 169.3 bushels per acre.
WHEAT futures in Chicago were lower on lessened concerns that grain exports from Russia and Ukraine will be disrupted as conflict between the countries continues.
Traders say that so far the grain trade has not yet been disrupted despite the fighting between Ukraine and pro-Russian rebels. The weekly export shipments were decent at 558,113 metric tonnes, according to analysts.
Spring wheat conditions are expected to slide slightly and harvest will remain behind normal, in the weekly crop USDA progress report due out late Monday afternoon.
– Asian grain importers are expecting to have an inflow of cheap feed wheat from Ukraine and France as heavy precipitation is damaging the crop quality in Europe, making them fit for only livestock feed.
– South Africa is expected to raise its estimate for the planted wheat area by 2.4 per cent, according to a survey.
– Egypt’s Minister of Agriculture said on Saturday that the country is aiming to be 75 per cent self-sufficient in wheat production by the end of 2014.
ICE Futures Canada settlement prices are in Canadian dollars per metric ton.
