By Terryn Shiells, Commodity News Service Canada
August 30, 2013
WINNIPEG – ICE Futures Canada canola contracts closed weaker on Friday, as traders were liquidating positions ahead of the long weekend, analysts said. US and Canadian markets will be closed on Monday for Labour Day.
Traders were also booking profits ahead of next week, as private crop estimates for US soybeans will be released and weather conditions are expected to be more favourable in the US.
Some of the price softness was also linked to spillover pressure from the losses seen in Chicago soybeans.
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Expectations that farmers in Western Canada will produce a record large canola crops this year were bearish, as was a pickup in farmer selling.
However, canola is more attractively priced compared to other oilseeds, which sparked some speculative and crusher buying interest.
The need to keep a weather premium built into prices due to continued worries about frost provided some support for values.
About 14,559 canola contracts were traded on Friday, which compares with Thursday when 30,241 contracts changed hands.
Barley prices were untraded and unchanged. Milling wheat and durum prices were also untraded, but the Exchange moved prices lower.
Settlement prices are in Canadian dollars per metric ton.
