Grain markets crossed the mid-point of August on the good news that the United States government has set meetings with China to discuss concessions and ways to mitigate the ongoing trade problems that have hammered grain prices. We have to be rational with our expectations, but there is some optimism that geopolitical banter will be for the better…. Read more »
Category: Markets
Beef Market Update: Anticipating an early fall run
Excessive heat has taken its toll on pastures, hay supplies, and water consumption for cattle, and while this may not be a big market issue today, Anne Wasko, of Gateway Livestock, says that these factors will mean an earlier, stronger fall run. That’s just one of the topics discussed in this week’s Beef Market Update…. Read more »
Soybean yield surprise sends futures sliding — USDA report highlights
Soybean futures took a 42-cent tumble on Friday after the USDA surprised the market with a 51.6 bushel/acre yield estimate for the U.S. crop — approximately two bushels higher than the average trade guess. The projected yield increase translated into a record 785 million bushel carryout projection (up from the department’s 580 million bushel estimate in… Read more »
Wheat prices jump into August — This week in the grain markets
This week, winter wheat prices touched a three-year high, but it didn’t last. Chicago SRW wheat prices for September 2018 gained 5 per cent or about 26 cents US/bushel to close at $5.56. While the December 2018 contract was up 5.4 percent — or nearly 30 cents — to finish a tad under $5.80. In… Read more »
A little humour settles the nerves after a wild Thursday in the wheat market
Thursday was a wild day in the wheat trade based on a confusing report out which seemed to indicate Ukraine was going to restrict exports of milling wheat. Bloomberg ran the story and the market — already in rally mode due to weather concerns in Europe — burst more than 25 cents higher based on… Read more »
Crude oil shipments by rail reaching record levels ahead of harvest
Crude oil shipments by rail in Canada are at record highs and forecast to continue climbing, as oil production has increased with no major expansion in export pipeline capacity. At the same time, executives for Canada’s two major railways say they intend to maintain rail capacity for grain. 198,788 barrels of oil per day were… Read more »
Beef Market Update: Quiet trade week as we get closer to the halfway point of summer
As our beef market expert Anne Wasko puts it, ‘It was the dog days of summer —but for the beef industry’ last week. It was a quiet trade week, and the cattle that did trade looked about $2 lower than the average price this year — however, it’s not a big surprise due to the… Read more »
Getting away from artificial prices – This week in the grain markets
Grain markets this week finished higher for the second straight week as the complex seemed to wake up from the nightmare it’s been in the last few months. Corn prices had a fairly good week in Chicago. Front-month and next-month contracts added a few percentage gains as markets kept a close eye on European weather… Read more »
Grain World crop tour lifts Prairie yield estimate
If you have heard us say it once, you will hear us say it again: the crop conditions in Western Canada are quite variable. Surprisingly, though, at Ag In Motion last week farmers repeatedly told us that crop conditions were better than you might expect. This week, Farmlink Marketing Solutions staff and third-party field scouts… Read more »
What’s behind recent strength in the Canadian dollar?
On Friday, the Canadian dollar rose nearly a cent relative to the U.S. dollar. The sudden ‘strength’ came from a couple of sources. First, more confidence that the Bank of Canada will continue the path gradual rate hikes; second, a weaker U.S. Dollar. Recent Canadian economic data warrants the Bank’s outlook for gradual rate increases…. Read more »
USDA Cattle on Feed report hints at need for continued consumer demand
The latest USDA Cattle on Feed report shows once again that the “wall” of cattle was not an unreasonable description. Thankfully, sustained consumer demand has helped greatly. The June report met expectations and further confirms what a bulk of analysts have been talking about the entire 2018 marketing year. Anne Wasko, with Gateway Livestock Exchange… Read more »
Christmas in July — This week in the grain market
Grain prices this week had a positive week for the first time in nearly 2 months. Almost feels like Christmas! Usually weather premiums are added to the market in late May through to June. However, this year, that seasonal pattern was idled thanks to an excellent start to the 2018 growing season in North America… Read more »
What will catch the falling knife?
Grain markets lost a fair amount in the second week of July and heightened geopolitical risk (read: trade war) and some decent-looking crops have negatively impacted grain prices. The latter factor was surmised by this week’s July 2018 WASDE report, which provided a reset of the goalposts when it comes to global agricultural supplies and… Read more »
Two buyers for every lamb: challenges and opportunities in the sheep industry
Canada imports more than half the lamb it consumes, which spells opportunity for our sheep farmers, but that opportunity isn’t the easiest to capitalize on. In the interview below, Marc Carere, vice chair of Ontario Sheep Farmers, talks to Shaun Haney about the tremendous amount of potential — but also incredible challenges —of this still-maturing… Read more »
Tariff battle looking like a turning point in world soybean trade
Despite what Chinese government officials say, most market analysts and traders believe China will need to buy soybeans from the U.S. this year, even if it means paying a 25 per cent tariff. “The question is not whether China is eventually going to have to buy U.S. soybeans. I think we all agree they have… Read more »