In the first half of March, a modest rally in the grain futures lifted prices off what appears to have been the seasonal low, but traders seem reluctant to drive prices significantly higher. A month ago I wrote about the search for a trigger that would spark a short-covering rally. It seems that the big […] Read more
Tag Archives Market Watch
Canadian producers hang on to wheat market share
Facing increasing competition from abroad and major system reorganization at home, Canada has done a good job of hanging on to its share of the global wheat market. That is a significant accomplishment, for as we leave behind the teens and head into the twenties of this still young century, Russia has come to dominate […] Read more
Safety net made in good times might fail in tough times
It is likely going to be a miserable year for crop income, and whatever party wins the federal election this fall will likely encounter increasing requests for agricultural income assistance. The harvest in much of Western Canada is already the slowest in many years. Recent rain has downgraded the quality of many standing crops and […] Read more
We need common sense when addressing meat’s role in climate change
If social media is anything to go by in assessing public opinion, and really it is not, people are losing their minds over meat’s role in climate change. As is too often the case, the extreme positions dominate the discussion. On the one hand, if we don’t all become vegetarians or vegans we are evil […] Read more
China’s meat import move risks stoking consumer anger
China’s rejection of all Canadian meat is a stunning act considering forecasts that pork prices there will rise 70 percent or more in the coming months, topping records hit in 2016, as its hog herd staggers under the onslaught of African swine fever. Pork is by far the most important meat in China and accounts […] Read more
April trade figures show China has hurt canola exports
We are starting to get numbers on how several issues are affecting Canada-China trade now that Statistics Canada released the April trade numbers. That was the month when China’s restrictions on imports of Canadian canola fully hit home. It was also the month when China’s problems with African swine fever really began to affect its […] Read more
Burdensome stocks weigh heavily on crop markets
China’s expanding trade restrictions are a serious situation that deserves the spotlight but growers must also understand there are additional reasons for the drop in crop prices in recent months. The market was not “buying acres” this spring, focusing instead on the prospect of large stocks-to-use ratios. That fact gets lost as every few days […] Read more
China has big impact but don’t ignore food processors
What are the connections between falling Canadian soybean acreage, a Rabobank analysis of the impact of African swine fever in China, strong beef exports to Asia, and reports by Food and Consumer Products of Canada and the Canadian Chamber of Commerce on impediments to food industry sustainability and competitiveness? For the purposes of this column […] Read more
Markets subdued as producers begin spring seeding
Following a dry winter, most of the Canadian Prairies could do with a good rain but many American producers wish for drier weather. Long range forecasts show potential for rain on the Prairies at the end of this month or early May. Meanwhile, moisture south of the border has been of the frozen type. A […] Read more
Over-dependence on one volatile market is a problem
Canola prices have fallen to around the same low level they hit the last time we were having trade issues with China back in the summer of 2016. Back then, China’s concern was the level of dockage and its potential to raise the introduction of blackleg disease. The Chinese are being less specific this time, […] Read more
