ICE review: Soyoil drop undermines canola
Dwayne Klassen, Resource News International
Winnipeg, March 27 — Canola contracts on the ICE Futures Canada platform finished the day lower with only the three nearby contracts experiencing any kind of volume. Weakness in canola was encouraged by the declines exhibited by the CHicago Board of Trade (CBOT) soybean complex and by a drop off fresh demand, market watchers said.
Position evening ahead of the weekend, the month-end and next week’s prospective plantings report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture was a feature of the activity in canola, brokers said.
Commercials were the main sellers of canola during the session with some of that interest spurred on by the downward price action seen in CBOT soybean and soyoil values, traders said. Declines in global crude oil values and talk of a sizeable jump in the amount of soybeans that will be planted by U.S. producers this spring also weighed on prices.
The losses overnight in Malaysian palm oil and European rapeseed values helped to undermine canola, as did a drop-off in Chinese demand for Canadian canola, brokers said.
The losses in canola were tempered in part by steady domestic crusher demand and weakness in the Canadian dollar. Some short-covering ahead of the weekend also limited the weakness in canola.
There were an estimated 8,970 canola contracts traded during Friday’s session, up from 6,620 during the previous session. Of the contracts traded Friday, 5,002 were spread related.
Western barley futures were little changed to slightly weaker. The May contract was the only future traded during the session with commercial offers being offset by light commercial bidding, brokers said.
An estimated 35 barley contracts changed hands during the session. On Thursday, 300 barley contracts were traded.
Prices are in Canadian dollars per tonne.
Settlement s
Price Change
Canola
May 416.10 dn 5.00
Jul 420.90 dn 4.60
Nov 425.70 dn 3.90
Western Barley
May 151.90 dn 0.60
Jul 157.00 dn 2.80
