CME June 2023 live cattle with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: CME live cattle hit five-week low

Technical selling, economic worries add pressure; June hogs up

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures dropped to their lowest level in more than five weeks on Tuesday as technical selling and concerns about the U.S. economy weighed on prices, analysts said. Economic worries increased after the failure over the weekend of First Republic Bank. Wall Street stock indexes sagged ahead […] Read more

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Buy or rent? Land rent-to-price ratio can help farmers decide

FCC sees current ratios on farmland as (roughly) stable

Higher interest rates don’t seem to be affecting the ratio between land values and land rental costs — at least, not yet. Farm Credit Canada’s latest analysis of farmland rental prices says they’re roughly maintaining their traditional linkage, says J.P Gervais, the organization’s chief economist. “We were curious to see whether that would bring up […] Read more


CBOT May 2023 soybeans with Bollinger bands (20,2). (Barchart)

U.S. grains: Chicago soy closes lower

Brazil production, Fed in focus for soy; wheat, corn still capped by Black Sea deal extension

Reuters — Chicago soy futures reversed gains to close lower on Tuesday, pushed down by rising estimates of Brazilian production, while corn and wheat dipped as markets kept a cautious eye on an expected Federal Reserve rate hike. Wheat and corn continue to be capped by the extension of a Black Sea export corridor from […] Read more

CBOT May 2023 soft red winter wheat with Bollinger bands (20,2). (Barchart)

U.S. grains: Wheat, corn rally from multi-month lows

Ukraine corridor talks eyed

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. wheat and corn futures rose on Tuesday, rebounding from multi-month lows set last week, as Wall Street equity markets turned higher and signs of fresh grain export demand emerged, analysts said. Uncertainty about talks to extend a wartime grain export corridor from Ukraine lent support. Soybean futures posted smaller advances […] Read more


“We have not yet seen the full impact of higher interest rates on the demand for farmland.” J.P. Gervais.  Graphic: Farm Credit Canada

Farmland values exceed expectations

Ontario leads the country with 19.4 per cent increase

Average farmland prices were up 12.8 per cent in Canada in 2022, the largest increase seen since 2014 when the increase was 14.3 per cent. The increase follows gains of 8.3 per cent in 2021 and 5.4 per cent in 2020. J.P. Gervais, FCC’s chief economist, said the numbers were a little bit of a […] Read more

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Prairie cash wheat: U.S. futures drag down wheat bids

Potential for more interest rate hikes remains

MarketsFarm — Hawkish comments from the chair of the U.S. Federal Reserve and the possible renewal of the Black Sea Grain Initiative brought down wheat futures on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) for the week ended Thursday — and, in turn, pressured western Canadian wheat bids. In front of the U.S. Senate banking committee […] Read more


CBOT March 2023 soft red winter wheat with 20-day moving average, MGEX March 2023 hard red spring wheat (yellow line) and K.C. March 2023 hard red winter wheat (orange line). (Barchart)

U.S. grains: Wheat nears one-month low on Black Sea competition

Chicago soybeans, corn also lower

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. wheat futures fell to their lowest in nearly a month on Wednesday as an Egyptian purchase tender highlighted export competition from the Black Sea region, tempering worries about war disruption to Ukrainian supplies, analysts said. Soybean futures fell on profit-taking and expectations of increasing soy export competition from Brazil, where […] Read more

CBOT March 2023 corn with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

CBOT weekly outlook: Wide array of factors affecting grain prices

Corn, soy see speculative profit-taking

MarketsFarm — Recent rains in parts of South America, as well as a correction in the markets, have paused rallies in corn and soybeans on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT), according to one trader. Jack Scoville, vice-president of The Price Futures Group in Chicago, said that while central and southern Argentina are still mired […] Read more


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CBOT weekly outlook: Weather outweighs U.S. Fed rate hike announcement

'People are returning to the Argentine situation'

MarketsFarm — Week-long rallies for grain futures on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) were disrupted by the U.S. Federal Reserve’s latest key interest rate announcement on Wednesday. The Fed revealed it is raising its key interest rate by 25 basis points in its ongoing fight against inflation. While the central bank acknowledged inflation is […] Read more

CBOT March 2023 soybeans with Bollinger bands (20,2). (Barchart)

U.S. grains: Soy sags as Brazil’s harvest looms

Wheat mixed, corn ends firm

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. soybean futures fell about one per cent on Wednesday as traders focused on the expanding harvest of a likely record-large soy crop in Brazil and positioned for the U.S. Federal Reserve’s decision on interest rates, analysts said. Wheat futures ended mixed, with the most-active March contract down on profit-taking, while […] Read more