By Phil Franz-Warkentin, Commodity News Service Canada
Winnipeg, Feb. 16 (CNS Canada) – ICE Futures Canada canola contracts were stronger on Friday, as traders adjusted positions ahead of the long weekend.
Many Canadian markets will be closed for provincial holidays on Monday, including Louis Riel Day in Manitoba and Family Day elsewhere. Meanwhile, U.S. markets will also take a long weekend for Presidents Day.
With plenty of time for adjustments to South American weather forecasts or other market moving developments over the weekend, traders were looking to square positions on Friday, according to participants.
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Weakness in the Canadian dollar and the fact that canola had lagged Chicago soybeans to the upside earlier in the week were also supportive.
However, the CBOT soy complex was softer on Friday, which tempered the advances in canola. Large old crop supplies and expectations for increased seeded area this spring also weighed on values.
About 25,676 canola contracts traded on Friday, which compares with Thursday when 16,249 contracts changed hands. Spreading accounted for 21,892 of the contracts traded.
SOYBEAN at the Chicago Board of Trade were lower on Friday, seeing a profit-taking correction after posting gains for most of the past week.
Relatively favourable Brazilian crop prospects and forecasts calling for light rains in parts of Argentina over the weekend also weighed on values. However, conditions remain hot and dry for the most part across Argentina, which kept some caution in the futures ahead of the long weekend.
Chinese markets were also closed for the Lunar New Year, further limiting some of the activity in the U.S. grains and oilseeds.
CORN futures settled near unchanged. After solid weekly export sales underpinned corn yesterday, the market found continued support on Friday from news of a private sale of 116,000 tonnes of US corn to Japan.
However, large supplies, increased farmer selling, and spillover from losses in wheat put some pressure on values.
WHEAT markets were mostly lower on Friday, with chart-based speculative selling a feature as traders squared positions ahead of the weekend.
Poor export demand also weighed on prices, as U.S. wheat exports are running well off last year’s pace.
However, continued dryness concerns across the U.S. Plains remained supportive with little meaningful precipitation in the nearby forecasts.
