ICE Canola Bounces Higher As Buying Picks Up

The early weakness in canola helped uncover some domestic crusher and exporter pricing interest, according to traders, although no fresh business was confirmed. Some of that demand was tied to improving crush margins, as the combination of a weaker Canadian dollar and stronger soyoil prices boosted margins.

"When you see prices move like this, there’s definitely some business going on," said a market analyst.

A lack of farmer selling added to the firmer tone in canola, although the analyst noted that with the harvest starting to progress across western Canada, farmer hedges will likely pick up on any attempts to move higher. He said harvest progress in Alberta and Saskatchewan was moving forward at a slower pace than had been anticipated.

Some speculative buying interest was also noted in canola, as the futures bounced off of some nearby support levels, according to traders. However, the analyst said the large funds were mostly absent from the day’s trade.

The gains in canola were tempered by the losses seen in soybeans, said traders. Overnight declines in Malaysian palm oil, losses in crude oil, and the general weakness in the equity markets also put some pressure on canola.

At 10:53 CDT, about 8,600 canola contracts had changed hands, with intermonth spreading only a small feature.

Western barley futures were untraded and unchanged.

Prices in Canadian dollars per metric ton at 10:53 CDT: