By Terryn Shiells and Dave Sims, Commodity News Service Canada
WINNIPEG, July 25 – ICE Futures Canada canola contracts ended slightly higher on Friday amid light, choppy pre-weekend activity.
Traders didn’t want to push prices too far one way or the other as they were waiting for fresh market moving news, analysts said.
The sharply lower Canadian dollar, which dropped more than half a cent relative to the US currency, helped to underpin prices.
Ongoing concerns about lower yield potential due to unfavourable conditions in Western Canada, steady demand and slow farmer selling were also bullish.
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On the other side, spillover pressure from outside oilseed markets, including the Chicago soy complex and European rapeseed futures, was bearish.
Forecasts calling for better weather conditions in some parts of Western Canada over the weekend also weighed on prices.
About 10,123 contracts traded on Friday, which compares with Thursday, when 13,448 contracts changed hands.
Milling wheat, durum and barley futures were untraded, though the Exchange moved wheat prices higher after Friday’s close.
SOYBEAN futures at the Chicago Board of Trade ended mixed Friday on a volatile day of trading, with near-term values enjoying positive gains of two to four cents per bushel on Asian demand while traders took profits on the more deferred contracts.
Showers are expected in central and eastern areas of the Midwest which will help give soybeans the moisture they need, according to a report. Cool temperatures have also helped improve the crop, an analyst said, which has put pressure on prices.
Farmer selling took place in both the US and South America yesterday, following bullish export data, a trader said.
SOYOIL futures were slightly lower, due to general weakness in the global vegetable oil market.
SOYMEAL futures were higher with spreading against soyoil.
CORN futures in Chicago rallied on Friday to end one to two cents per bushel higher, on sentiments supplies were oversold and an effort to square positions ahead of the weekend. Trading was choppy with values ultimately ending above three dollars and sixty-three cents a bushel.
Yields in the Midwest are expected to be at a record high this year, with one private research group calling for 174.1 bushels an acre. That is well above the USDA’s forecast of 165.3 bushels an acre.
China will reportedly request that all imports are free of the Syngenta’s MIR 162 trait, according to a report. Such a move could limit sales to that country as the US has approved the MIR 162 corn variety.
WHEAT futures in Chicago rose seven to nine cents per bushel as traders bought back contracts on ideas current low prices will spark demand.
The market also saw some consolidation after hitting contract lows this week, an analyst said.
Turmoil in the eastern Ukraine has prompted Russia and Ukraine to offer increasingly lower bids, according to a report.
Depending on the level of sanctions that could be levelled against Russia by western powers, one analyst suggested dumping could happen in the future.
Gulf wheat premiums were mostly steady yesterday, according to a report.
• The Serbian wheat harvest, which has been interrupted several times by rain, is 99 per cent complete, according to a report. The grain’s quality is expected to be variable because of the bad weather, an analyst said.
• India is expected to release 10 million more tonnes of wheat onto the open market, according to a report.
• The European Union has awarded licenses to import 40,553 tonnes of Ukrainian wheat by October 31, 2014. The move was reportedly prompted by a trade deal between the EU and Kiev that promises a duty-free quota until to November.
ICE Futures Canada settlement prices are in Canadian dollars per metric ton.
