By Glen Hallick, MarketsFarm
WINNIPEG, March 29 (MarketsFarm) – ICE Futures canola contracts were steady at the end of trading on Friday.
Earlier in the day, the May canola contract hit C$459.60 per tonne, by slipped back to C$455.30 per tonne for a gain of 10 cents compared to yesterday’s close.
A Winnipeg-based trader said there wasn’t a clear reason as to why prices had been up earlier on Friday, but could have been short covering, some form of spread liquidation or a combination of little things.
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The Canadian dollar was stronger on Friday, at 74.87 U.S. cents, which weighed on canola values.
Also ongoing Canada/China tensions weighed on values. On Thursday, federal Minister of Public Safety Ralph Goodale commented China has yet to provide any scientific evidence to back up their claim that canola from Richardson International and Viterra was contaminated with hazardous pests.
“We will keep pushing as hard as we can on this vital point,” Goodale stated.
The dispute began when Canadian authorities arrested a Huawei executive in December at the request of the United States.
Large canola supplies in Canada and United States farmers likely switching from corn to planting soybeans also tempered gains.
As well pressure from soybeans on the Chicago Board of trade weighed on values. In the U.S. Department of Agriculture report on Grain Stocks estimated soybean stocks, at 73.9 million tonnes, to be about 29 per cent larger than this time last year.
About 25,735 contracts were traded on Friday, which compares with Thursday when approximately 16,290 contracts changed hands.
SOYBEAN futures at the Chicago Board of Trade were weaker on Friday, dragged down by sagging corn prices, according to a report.
Soybeans made gains earlier in trading on news that private exporters sold 1.102 million tonnes to China during the 2018/2019 crop year.
Trade talks between the United States and China wrapped up in Beijing on Friday. U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said talks were constructive. Negotiations are set to resume next week in Washington.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) released its Prospective Plantings report on Friday. Soybeans were pegged at 84.6 million acres, a drop of five per cent from last year.
The USDA also released its Grain Stocks report on Friday. As of March 1, soybeans were at 73.9 million tonnes, down 27.5% from December. But stocks were 29 per cent larger than this time last year.
CORN futures were weaker on Friday.
Corn acres were projected to be 92.8 million acres, up four per cent from last year. However severe flooding in the U.S. could bring changes to planting intentions from corn to soybeans.
The USDA reported corn stocks at 218.6 million tonnes, down nearly 28 per cent from December and three per cent smaller than in March 2018.
WHEAT futures were also weaker on Friday.
The USDA reported total wheat acres were estimated at 45.8 million acres, down four per cent and the lowest wheat estimate in 100 years.
Total wheat stocks were 43.3 million tonnes, down 21 per cent from December, but six per cent larger than this time last year.
