By Phil Franz-Warkentin and Dave Sims, Commodity News Service Canada
Winnipeg, June 23 (CNS Canada) – ICE Futures Canada canola contracts were stronger on Friday, as the market corrected off of nearby lows ahead of the weekend.
Intermonth spreading was a feature of the activity, with largest gains in the nearby July contract as participants were being forced to pay up to exit the front month ahead of expiry, according to a trader.
Tightening old crop supplies, a firmer tone in Chicago Board of Trade soyoil, and weakness in the Canadian dollar contributed to the gains in canola.
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However, relatively favourable crop conditions across most of Western Canada tempered the upside. A lack of significant end user demand coupled with steady farmer deliveries also weighed on prices.
About 30,333 canola contracts traded on Friday, which compares with Thursday when 41,213 contracts changed hands. Spreading accounted for 20,308 of the contracts traded.
Milling wheat, durum, and barley were all untraded.
CORN futures in Chicago declined by roughly five cents on Friday due to improving weather forecasts in the US Midwest. Rain is expected to fall over the weekend, which should help alleviate drought stress in many areas.
China auctioned off 1.17 million tonnes of corn on Friday from its state reserves.
Argentina lowered its production estimate for the 2016/17 crop year to 46.5 million tonnes. That compares to the previous estimate of 47.5 million tonnes.
SOYBEAN futures at the Chicago Board of Trade finished mixed to end the week, as traders squared positions before the weekend.
Weather conditions brought some light support to the market, as the after-effects of Tropical Storm Cindy created small floods in part of the southeastern Midwest.
Record large production in South America cast a bearish tint over the market.
SOYOIL futures ended 6 to 7 points higher on Thursday.
SOYMEAL futures followed soybeans and finished slightly lower on the day.
WHEAT futures in Chicago ended one to two cents weaker on Friday, as portions of drought-stressed South Dakota were expecting scattered showers.
Russia expects to export 2.5 to 2.7 million tonnes of grain in July, which is a considerable amount.
On the other side, drought-like conditions are getting worse in many parts of Europe.
