Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) grains and soybean futures tumbled on Thursday on news that China and other buyers had canceled a flurry of U.S. soybean orders in early January and Argentina’s soy crop could be larger than previously expected, traders said. The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) export sales report […] Read more
U.S. grains: U.S. exports get no Valentine’s Day love
U.S. livestock: Cattle sink on lower beef, slowing demand
Chicago | Reuters — U.S. live cattle futures declined for a second straight session on Wednesday as lower beef prices and seasonally slowing demand for the red meat triggered profit-taking and technical selling, traders and analysts said. Traders are awaiting the next wave of cattle sales at U.S. Plains feedlot markets, but cash market bids […] Read more
ICE weekly outlook: Canola grinding lower
ICE Futures canola contracts held relatively steady during the week ended Wednesday, with a softer tone in old-crop contracts and strength in new-crop months. The general trend is likely pointed lower in the near future, with any developments in trade talks between the U.S. and China likely to provide some direction. “The market is awaiting […] Read more
U.S. grains: Wheat up, soy eases as China trade talks eyed
Chicago | Reuters — U.S. wheat futures advanced on Wednesday for a fourth straight session as a pickup in export activity and firm cash markets spurred commodity fund buying, traders said. Corn was little changed and soybeans eased as traders waited to see if U.S.-China trade talks would show the two sides moving to end […] Read more
CBOT weekly outlook: All eyes on March 1 trade deadline
As high-level trade talks are underway in Beijing this week between the U.S. and China, commodity markets are watching carefully, said an analyst following the Chicago Board of Trade. “All eyes are on March 1,” said Steve Georgy of Allendale Inc. Should negotiators fail to make any progress toward resolving the U.S./China trade war, the […] Read more
U.S. livestock: Hog futures jump on U.S.-China trade hopes
Chicago | Reuters — U.S. lean hog futures jumped more than two per cent on Tuesday in a second straight day of strong gains fueled by hopes that U.S.-China trade talks would revive Chinese demand for American pork, traders and analysts said. Bargain buying further propelled gains after benchmark April futures dropped for four straight […] Read more
Even as tariffs fall, new trade barriers arise
Protectionists don’t give up when their government signs a free trade deal
Reading Time: 4 minutes Donald Trump might not get his wall — but other invisible walls are going up around the world. “We’re in an era of protectionism, and in an era of protectionism, we have governments and regulators that are looking for any excuse to block trade,” said Cam Dahl, president of Cereals Canada. “So we can’t give […] Read more
U.S. livestock: Hogs fall on technical selling, live cattle up
Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange lean hog futures declined more than one per cent on Tuesday, giving back a portion of gains notched on Monday in a technical setback, traders said. Hogs on Monday surged from a multimonth low, boosted in part by technically oversold conditions. But the market remained anchored by abundant […] Read more
Pulse weekly outlook: Chickpea area to drop back to ‘normal’
Canadian chickpea acres are expected to return to more normal levels in 2019, after a sizeable jump in 2018. However, while prices are off the highs that drove 2018 seeding intentions, they still could have some room to the upside over the next few months. After seeding 442,900 acres of chickpeas in 2018, Canadian farmers […] Read more
EU seeks to soothe U.S. by clearing soybeans for biofuel
Reuters — The European Commission said on Tuesday it had concluded that U.S. soybeans can be used in biofuels in the European Union, part of the bloc’s push to improve strained trade relations with the United States. However, industry sources said it was unlikely to lead to a flood of additional U.S. soybean imports into […] Read more