Markets
The year began on several sour notes. A report showed China’s economy appears to be contracting, sparking a seven percent stock market plunge that spread to other markets around the world. Tensions rose between Shiite Iran and Sunni Saudi Arabia, raising the possibility of even more conflict in the already violence prone region. This made […] Read more
Markets
Wild weather fails to alter bearish crop supply outlook
Ukraine, Russian crops likely to survive cold snap
KIEV, Ukraine (Reuters) — A cold snap that gripped Ukraine and European Russia as the new year dawned is unlikely to affect winter grain crops. A blanket of snow in eastern Ukraine should provide protection against temperatures that fell as low as -23 C, analyst UkrAgroConsult said Jan. 4. “Snow depth of more than 15 […] Read more
Brazilian farm keen on hedging, diversification
CHICAGO, Ill. — The term megafarm takes on a whole new meaning in Brazil. Guilherme Scheffer, financial risk management director with Grupo Scheffer, recently described the scope and scale of one of the biggest farming operations in the country. The company planted 169,195 acres of soybeans in 2015-16, but that land is also used to […] Read more
Use marketing tools to reduce risk, experts advise
Now is the time when the profitability pencils get seriously sharpened. Many farmers have been looking at 2016-17 prices since harvest, but it’s only after Jan. 1 that the intense crop-versus-crop comparisons start being made, not only by individual farmers but also by farm management experts. A particularly good outfit for calculating crop profitability is […] Read more
WP livestock report
Cattle prices rally Cattle futures jumped during the final week of 2015, supported by live cattle prices in the southern U.S. Plains. Prices gained more than US$10 per hundredweight in cash markets as wintry weather and muddy feedlot conditions slowed movement of animals to slaughterhouses. Market-ready, or cash, cattle in the U.S. Plains moved at […] Read more
Canola futures fall below $480 on China jitters
Canola closed down more than $8 a tonne, slammed by jitters about China’s economy, weaker crude oil and readjustments to bring its price back in line with the soy complex. Most-traded March closed at $478, down $8.10 or 1.67 percent. Canola rallied modestly through December while soy oil fell and some analysts said that the […] Read more
Weak loonie, Chinese turmoil affecting canola early in 2016
WINNIPEG — One might expect the dropping Canadian dollar to spur an increase of foreign buying of canola, but the truth may not be quite so simple. Conventional wisdom holds that buyers in other countries should find canola more attractive now that the loonie is sitting at a 12-year low relative to its U.S. counterpart. […] Read more
Cargill’s second quarter operating profit drops 13 percent, revenues slide 10 percent
CHICAGO, Ill. (Reuters) —Cargill has reported a 13 percent drop in quarterly earnings before special items, citing lower commodity prices and weaker demand in some markets. A milder-than-normal start to the winter in North America curbed earnings from products such as road salt and pressured prices of natural gas and power, which hurt the privately […] Read more
Baltic Dry Index continues downward slide
WINNIPEG — The downtrend in ocean freight rates is showing no sign of letting up as the Baltic Dry Index once again hit fresh historic lows The BDI was quoted at 445 points Jan. 7, marking a new low since records began in 1985. The index was trading higher than 1,200 as recently as the […] Read more
Canola rises with crusher, exporter buying
WINNIPEG (Reuters) — ICE Canada canola rose on Wednesday, lifted by crusher and exporter buying. A weaker Canadian dollar is stimulating demand, a trader said. The lower loonie improves margins for crushers and makes exported canola more attractive in world trade. The most-active March canola gained $1.80 at $486.10 per tonne. ICE reported 1,039 January […] Read more
