By Phil Franz-Warkentin, Commodity News Service Canada
Winnipeg, Nov. 22 (CNS Canada) – ICE Futures canola contracts were weaker on Wednesday, although activity was thin and choppy as many traders kept to the sidelines with the Chicago Board of Trade closed for Thanksgiving.
Speculative selling was a feature in the lightly traded market, as the overall technical signals remain bearish despite the bounce off of nearby lows earlier in the week.
A firmer tone in the Canadian dollar and losses in outside vegetable oil markets also weighed on prices.
Read Also
ICE canola falling further
Glacier FarmMedia | MarketsFarm – Canola futures on the Intercontinental Exchange extended Wednesday’s downturn this morning, pressured by declining comparable oils….
However, support held to the downside as participants showed a reluctance to push values too far with the United States markets closed.
About 6,266 canola contracts traded, which compares with Wednesday when 20,258 contracts changed hands. Spreading accounted for 2,830 of the contracts traded.
Soybean, corn, and wheat futures at the Chicago Board of Trade were all untraded due to the Thanksgiving holiday, and will only trade for a shortened session tomorrow.
Positioning ahead of the G20 summit should be a feature when activity resumes Friday morning. South American production prospects will be followed closely, as conditions in Argentina and Brazil remain relatively favourable for the time being.
The International Grains Council released a report today adjusting its world production estimates slightly.
The IGC lowered its world corn production forecast by a million tonnes, to 1.074 billion. Forecasted soybean production for the current marketing year was lowered by 2 million tonnes, to 367 million. Forecasted wheat production was left unchanged at 729 million tonnes.
In other global news, Malaysian palm oil prices fell to their weakest levels in three years on Thursday with recent losses in crude oil behind some of the selling pressure. Large stocks and slow export demand also weighed on that market, which likely contributed to the declines in canola.
