Hard red spring wheat bids in Western Canada moved higher during the week ended Dec. 12, as gains in the United States futures and weakness in the Canadian dollar provided support.
Corn ending stocks in the United States will be tighter than earlier projections due to increased exports and demand from ethanol producers, according to updated supply/demand estimates from the U.S. Department of Agriculture released Dec. 10. The projected wheat carryout was also revised lower, while soybean stocks were unchanged.
Speculative fund traders were busy putting on fresh bearish bets in early December, taking the net managed money short position back above 100,000 contracts for the first time in two months, according to the latest Commitments of Traders report from the United States Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).
Domestic feed barley and United States corn imports are pretty much the same price in Western Canada, said Darcy Haley, vice-president of Ag Value Brokers in Lethbridge.
While Statistics Canada reported more wheat was grown in 2024/25, canola production fell back as the agency issued its principal field crops report on Dec. 5.
Proposed tariffs imposed on Canadian and Mexican imports into the U.S. gave the Chicago Board of Trade a lot to think about during the week ended Dec. 4, 2024.
U.S. soybean futures rebounded on Tuesday in a short-covering and bargain-buying bounce from the prior day's losses, although gains were limited by favorable crop prospects in South America, where Brazil is due to harvest a record crop early next year.
Of Australia's three largest winter crops for 2024/25, canola production was projected to be down from the previous year. Meanwhile, estimates for wheat and barley output were forecast to be higher than a year ago.