Chicago Board of Trade soybean futures fell to a 2020 low on Wednesday, while corn hovered near a four-year low as favorable U.S. crop conditions kept a lid on prices.
Soybean and corn futures at the Chicago Board of Trade fell to fresh contract lows in early July, as relatively favourable growing conditions and bearish technical signals weighed on values.
Manitoba experienced variable amounts of precipitation during the week ended July 7 as crops continued to develop despite excess moisture in most areas.
Chicago wheat and corn futures ticked higher on Tuesday after sharp declines on Monday, while most-active soybean futures closed at their lowest point in nearly four years, as expectations of ample supplies from northern hemisphere harvests hung over the market.
Chicago Board of Trade soybeans and corn futures on Monday dropped to around the lowest prices in four years, as traders expected a positive picture of U.S. crop progress from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) in a report due later in the day.
Fund traders continued to add to their large net short positions in canola as the calendar flipped to the final month of the 2023/24 marketing year for the crop, according to the latest Commitments of Traders report from the United States Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).
Crops throughout Alberta stood at 75 per cent good to excellent as of July 2, according to the latest crop report from the provincial agriculture department. That was eight points above the five-year average despite cooler than normal temperatures and delayed crop development due to excessive rain for most of the province so far this year.
Chicago Board of Trade wheat futures spiked on Friday amid an uptick in demand for U.S. wheat due to a weaker dollar and the availability of desirable new-crop wheat, traders said.
Although crop conditions in Saskatchewan were good, the province’s latest crop report said development continued to fall behind normal for this time of year. Saskatchewan Agriculture pointed to the cooler temperatures and wet conditions as why development has been slower this year.
Chicago Board of Trade soybean futures rose on short covering on Wednesday after nearing a four-year low this week on concerns about large supplies and lackluster U.S. export demand, analysts said.