By Phil Franz-Warkentin, Commodity News Service Canada
Winnipeg, Jan. 31 (CNS Canada) – ICE Futures canola contracts were weaker on Thursday, after trading to both sides of unchanged in choppy activity.
Canola posted gains in early activity, but that early speculative buying interest ran into chart resistance when the March contract touched the 50-day moving average, according to a trader.
Continued strength in the Canadian dollar, after it rallied on Wednesday, and a downturn in the Chicago Board of Trade soy complex also weighed on values.
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Steady farmer selling, despite the cold temperatures across the Prairies, added to the softer tone.
About 20,659 canola contracts traded on Thursday, which compares with Wednesday when 25,124 contracts changed hands. Spreading accounted for 12,240 of the contracts traded.
SOYBEAN futures at the Chicago Board of Trade were weaker on Thursday, as traders await fresh trade news.
The United States Department of Agriculture released export sales data for the week ended Dec. 20, as the agency catches up following the month-long government shutdown. Soybean exports came in at 2.4 million tonnes that week, with China a major customer.
China and the U.S. are holding trade talks in Washington this week, and uncertainty over what will come of the negotiations kept some caution in the market.
While there had been some optimism over improving trade relations recently, U.S. President Donald Trump tweeted today that nothing would happen until he met personally with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Weather concerns and declining production prospects in parts of Brazil were supportive. However, mounting harvest pressure out of the South American country kept the overall bias pointed lower.
CORN was also lower on the day. Weekly U.S. corn exports as Dec. 20 were solid, at 1.7 million tonnes, but the datedness of the data limited its impact on the futures.
The European Commission released updated production estimates, leaving their corn production number for 2018 unchanged at 67.5 million tonnes. Export projections were up 1.5 million tonnes from an earlier forecast, at 20 million.
WHEAT futures were lower across the board, as U.S. wheat traders continue to await some fresh supportive export news.
However, bitterly cold temperatures in parts of the Midwest provided some support, amid concerns over winterkill in areas with not enough snow cover.
The European Commission left its wheat production estimate unchanged at 128.5 million tonnes, but lowered its export prediction by two million tonnes, to 18 million.
