North American Grain/Oilseed Review: Canola up, grains mixed

WINNIPEG — The ICE Futures canola market was on the rise on Monday with the November contract hitting a two-week high.

Chicago soyoil, European rapeseed and Malaysian palm oil were all supportive of the oilseed. Crude oil was up nearly US$2 per barrel after a missile strike from militant group Hezbollah hit Israel over the weekend.

An analyst confirmed comparable oils, especially Malaysian palm oil, helped lift canola prices, adding what farmers do with their old crop will dictate prices in the short term. The analyst suggested Statistics Canada could add 500,000 to 700,000 tonnes to its 2023/24 canola production numbers when the agency releases its principal field crops report on Wednesday.

At mid-afternoon, the Canadian dollar was up more than one-quarter of a United States cent compared to Friday’s close.

There were 31,696 canola contracts traded on Monday, which compares with Friday when 31,291 contracts changed hands. Spreading accounted for 16,544 of the contracts traded.

The November SOYBEAN contract moved upwards on Monday for the fifth time in six sessions at the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT). The contract also hit a three-day high, but not enough to get over the US$10 per bushel mark.

In total, 411,165 tonnes of United States soybeans were shipped during the week ended Aug. 22, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The figure was 26 per cent above the same week last year. Accumulated sales so far this marketing year reached 44.203 million tonnes, down 13.9 per cent from last year.

Last week, the USDA reported seven flash sales of U.S. soybeans totaling 1.384 million tonnes, mostly to China and unknown destinations.

The ProFarmer Crop Tour delivered its estimates for the U.S. soybean crop, with an average yield of 54.9 bushels per acre and production at 4.74 billion bushels. Illinois led all the states on the tour with an average yield of 69 bushels per acre. Both figures were larger than the USDA’s estimates.

China fined Sinograin and six other firms the equivalent of US$1.54 million for using fuel tankers to transport used cooking oil, breaking food safety regulations.

The December contract for all three major U.S. WHEAT varieties hit new lows on Monday. However, the Kansas City hard red wheat contract ended the session higher.

The USDA said 537,169 tonnes of wheat were exported during the week ended Aug. 22, 37.6 per cent more than one year ago. The first three months of the marketing year had 5.146 million tonnes of exports, up 27.7 per cent from last year.

China is expected to buy less wheat in the second half of 2024 due to increased domestic production and less demand for flour.  China bought 10.08 million tonnes of wheat in the first half of the year, but imports for the second half are pegged to be between two million to four million tonnes.

Germany’s 2024 winter wheat crop will be 15 per cent less than last year’s at 18.03 million tonnes, according to its national farmers association. The decline was attributed to heavy rains earlier this summer.

The December CORN contract went down for the third straight day while also hitting a new contract low.

The USDA reported 894,295 tonnes of corn were exported, which marked the largest amount during that week since 2018. Marketing year-to-date shipments totaled 51.034 million tonnes with one week left in the crop year.

The ProFarmer Crop Tour released its estimates for the U.S. corn crop with the average yield at 181.1 bushels per acre and production at 14.979 billion bushels. While still a large crop, the figures are below the USDA’s own projections. Illinois had a record average yield of 220 bushels per acre during the tour, breaking the old record of 214 set in 2022.