By Phil Franz-Warkentin, MarketsFarm
WINNIPEG, June 29 (MarketsFarm) – The ICE Futures canola market was stronger on Tuesday, hitting fresh contract highs in the new crop months as consistent concerns over hot and dry Prairie weather kept the bias to the upside.
Record high temperatures were being reported in Western Canada this week, with little precipitation in the immediate forecasts to alleviate the heat.
Statistics Canada released updated acreage estimates Tuesday morning, pegging canola plantings for the year at 22.5 million acres. That’s up by about a million from earlier intentions and nearly two million above what was planted last year, but in line with trade expectations.
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Weakness in the Canadian dollar and gains in Chicago Board of Trade soyoil added to the strength in canola.
About 27,045 canola contracts traded on Tuesday, which compares with Monday when 15,063 contracts changed hands. Spreading accounted for 5,686 of the contracts traded.
SOYBEAN futures at the Chicago Board of Trade were narrowly mixed on Tuesday, with gains in the front months and a steady to softer tone in the more active new crop months. The United States Department of Agriculture releases much-anticipated acreage and quarterly stocks reports on Wednesday, with pre-report positioning a feature.
The U.S. soybean crop was left unchanged at 60 per cent good-to-excellent in the latest weekly condition report. Emergence, at 96 per cent, was slightly ahead of average.
The latest Midwestern forecasts have a bit higher chance of rain over the next week, helping ease the concerns over hot temperatures that had propped prices up recently.
CORN was stronger, as traders adjusted positions ahead of Wednesday’s reports.
The good-to-excellent ratings for corn dipped one point on the week, now at 64 per cent in the top two quality categories.
Talk of possible frost in Brazil this next week was also supportive.
However, expectations for a sizeable increase in U.S. corn acres compared to earlier forecasts kept a lid on the upside to some extent.
WHEAT futures were mostly lower, with the largest losses in Minneapolis spring wheat after an overnight jump to fresh contract highs gave way to profit-taking.
The key spring wheat growing regions of the Canadian Prairies and the northern U.S. Plains remain hot and dry, with only 20 per cent of the U.S. crop hitting the good-to-excellent rating in the latest weekly report.
Meanwhile, the U.S. winter wheat harvest was 33 per cent done.
Total Canadian wheat area for 2021/22 was pegged at 23.6 million acres, up slightly from the earlier forecast and in line with trade guesses.
