File photo of Ukraine’s Agriculture Minister Mykola Solskyi at a “Global Food Security Call to Action” meeting of foreign ministers at United Nations headquarters in New York, on May 18, 2022. (Photo: Reuters/Eduardo Munoz)

Russia’s war may deprive world of three Ukrainian wheat harvests, minister says

'Significant' decline expected in winter wheat acres

Kyiv | Reuters — Russia’s invasion of Ukraine will create a global wheat shortage for at least three seasons by keeping much of the Ukrainian crop from markets, pushing prices to record levels, Ukraine’s agriculture minister told Reuters. Ukraine, sometimes known as Europe’s breadbasket, has had its maritime grain export routes blocked by Russia and […] Read more



(Qingwa/iStock/Getty Images)

June USDA report includes few changes or surprises

U.S. corn, soybean carryout projections down from May's

MarketsFarm — There were only a handful of major changes in the monthly supply and demand report released Friday by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). “I thought it was neutral to a little bit friendly,” said Terry Reilly, grains analyst with Futures International in Chicago. Perhaps most notable were the ending stocks for new-crop […] Read more

An oil refinery near Houston, Texas. The refining margins and fuel prices cited in the column below are for the U.S., but the same shortage of refining capacity and fuel inventories is boosting diesel prices elsewhere, creating a sharp rise in gasoline prices with them.

Opinion: It’s not just oil prices — refining capacity is driving up fuel bills

Fat margins mean refineries have plenty of reasons to up production but they have limited capacity

Reading Time: 3 minutes Reuters – Global stocks of refined petroleum products have fallen to critically low levels as refineries prove unable to keep up with surging demand especially for the diesel-like fuels used in manufacturing and freight transportation. The result has been a surge in prices refiners receive for selling fuels compared with prices they pay for buying […] Read more


Nutrien’s head office building in Saskatoon. (Liam O’Connor photo)

Nutrien to further boost potash output amid global shortage

Company will also speed up nitrogen capacity boosts

Reuters — Nutrien, the world’s largest fertilizer producer, said Thursday it will increase its Canadian potash production by 20 per cent to an annual 18 million tonnes by 2025, helping to address tight supplies that have contributed to a global food shortage. Potash prices have soared since the West imposed sanctions against Russia for Moscow’s […] Read more

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CBOT weekly outlook: Soy prices rise, yields may follow suit

MarketsFarm — Soybeans were the high-rising crop on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) for the week ended Wednesday, two days before the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s monthly world agriculture supply/demand estimates (WASDE) are released. Old- and new-crop soybeans all rose in tandem during the week, but while old-crop contracts are rising in price due […] Read more



Aerial view of the Nika-Tera port terminal at Mykolaiv, Ukraine from a 2020 corporate video. (Nika-Tera video screengrab via YouTube)

Russian attack destroys warehouses of major Ukrainian port terminal, owner says

Kyiv | Reuters — Russian shelling destroyed the warehouses of one of Ukraine’s largest agricultural commodities terminals in the Black Sea port of Mykolaiv over the weekend, authorities and the facility’s owner said Tuesday. The attack came at a time Turkey is trying to develop a U.N.-backed plan to start grain exports from Ukraine’s ports, […] Read more


CBOT July 2022 wheat (candlesticks) with Bollinger bands (20,2), MGEX July 2022 spring wheat (yellow line) and K.C. July 2022 hard red wheat (orange line). (Barchart)

U.S. grains: Wheat futures drop after rally

Strong cash market supports corn, soy

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. wheat futures fell 1.9 per cent on Tuesday on a round of profit taking as traders closely monitored prospects for grain exports out of Ukraine. “Wheat continues to ride the wave of varied rhetoric from the Black Sea that seemingly changes by the minute,” Matt Zeller, director of market information […] Read more

CBOT July 2022 wheat (candlesticks) with MGEX July 2022 spring wheat (yellow line) and K.C. July 2022 hard red wheat (orange line). (Barchart)

U.S. grains: Wheat futures rally, pull corn higher

Soy also gains; Ukraine grain export prospects dim

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. wheat futures surged 5.1 per cent on Monday, supported by concerns about lengthy disruptions to shipments out of Ukraine as fighting intensified in that key grain export country. The strength in wheat spilled over into the corn market, which was on track to snap a streak of four straight negative […] Read more