North American Grain and Oilseed Review: Canola finishes strong

By Glen Hallick, MarketsFarm

Glacier Farm Media MarketsFarm – Intercontinental Exchange canola futures closed out the week Friday on a high note, holding its up and down path.

There was ample spillover from gains in the Chicago soy complex, European rapeseed and Malaysian palm oil. Also, strong upticks in crude oil prices were lending support to the vegetable oils.

Some 6,000 Teamsters headed back to work on Friday at Canadian National Railway, after federal Minister of Labour Steven MacKinnon imposed binding arbitration. An analyst suggested traffic at CN should be back to normal by the end of next week.

However, things stalled at Canadian Pacific Kansas City as it negotiated back to work arrangements with its 3,300 Teamsters and the Canada Industrial Relations Board. Also, the Teamsters took umbrage with MacKinnon’s move and filed a complaint with the CIRB.

Agricultural groups estimated the work stoppage at both railways would have cost Canadian farmers at least C$50 million per day. Other groups placed the cost to the country’s economy at upwards to C$1 billion/day.

The Canadian dollar was stronger at mid-afternoon Friday with the loonie at 74.02 U.S. cents compared to Thursday’s close of 73.52.

There were 31,291 contracts traded on Friday, compared to the 32,504 contracts that changed hands on Thursday. Spreading accounted for 14,366 contracts traded.

Prices are in Canadian dollars per metric tonne:

Price     Change

Canola          Nov     584.80    up 19.30

Jan     596.60    up 18.60

Mar     605.20    up 18.00

May     610.50    up 16.80

SOYBEAN futures at the Chicago Board of Trade were stronger on Friday, benefitting from a week of good export sales.

The United States Department of Agriculture announced yet another private sale of new crop soybeans. Today’s was for 120,000 to unknown destinations. This week, private sales of U.S. soybeans came to almost 1.4 million tonnes.

The Pro Farmer crop tour swung through Minnesota and Iowa and estimated soybean pod counts to be larger than those last year. The tour in Minnesota put the count a 1036.6 in Minnesota, up from 985.0 last year and nearly on par with the three-year average of 1,037.0. The counts in Iowa came to 1,312,3, well above last year’s 1,190.4 and the average of 1,194.2.

There’s a chance of a strike at U.S. East Coast ports and those along the Gulf of Mexico as negotiations involving the International Longshoreman’s Association and the U.S. Maritime Alliance have stalled. The current contract is set to expire on Sept. 30.

CORN futures were lower on Friday, in sympathy with wheat.

The PF crop tour placed corn yields in Minnesota at 164.9 bushels per acre, falling from last year’s 181.34 and the average of 183.1. Iowa yields came in at 192.8, up from 182.8 a year ago and the average of 185.8.

The Buenos Aires Grain Exchange said the corn harvest in Argentina was almost 99 per cent complete with the crop pegged at 46.5 million tonnes.

France said its corn crop is holding at 76 per cent good to excellent.

South Korea purchased 133,000 tonnes of corn, most likely from South America.

WHEAT futures were lower on Friday, dropping to new lows in the December contracts.

The U.S. spring wheat harvest has stalled due to rain and quality has become an issued.

The French soft wheat harvest has wrapped up and the crop was 49 per cent good to excellent.

Ukraine reported it has exported 6.4 million tonnes of grain so far in 2024/25, up from 3.8 million tonnes a year ago. That included 3.1 million tonnes of wheat, 1.1 million of barley and 2.2 million of corn.

Rain continued to delay wheat planting in Argentina. The BAGE projected 15.6 million acres of wheat to be seeded for 2024/25.

Jordan acquired 120,000 tonnes of milling wheat.