Reading Time: < 1 minute Beijing/Reuters – China will work off its corn stockpile in the next three to five years, said an executive at one of the country’s top corn processing firms on Wednesday, as firms ramp up processing capacity to use up the old stocks of grain. COFCO Biochemical, a listed subsidiary of the state-owned Chinese grains trader […] Read more
China to work off corn stockpile in three to five years
Klassen: Renewed confidence lifts feeder cattle market
Reading Time: 2 minutes Western Canadian feeder cattle markets traded $3-$5 above week-ago levels on average; stronger buying interest was noted on short-keep cattle with prices quoted $5 to as much as $8 higher. Feedlot operators stepped forward more aggressively with ideas that yearling supplies will dwindle over the next month. Quality cattle are starting to thin out at […] Read more
Bird flu redirects trade flow of U.S. chicken, eggs, grains
Reading Time: 3 minutes Chicago | Reuters –– Global outbreaks of bird flu in poultry have altered the flow of U.S. chicken meat, eggs and grain around the world, adding to challenges faced by domestic exporters and giving a leg up to Brazil, which has so far escaped the disease. Different strains of avian flu have been detected across […] Read more
Canpotex aims for ‘material’ potash price bump from China
Reading Time: 2 minutes Winnipeg | Reuters — Canadian potash exporter Canpotex is pressing Chinese buyers to pay a “material” price increase for the fertilizer in their annual supply contract, as spot values in other markets rise off multi-year lows, Canpotex’s chief executive said on Monday. “We’re not interested in some kind of ratcheting down. That is for sure,” […] Read more
China clears ChemChina’s Syngenta deal
Reading Time: < 1 minute Zurich | Reuters — ChemChina’s US$43 billion planned takeover of Swiss pesticides and seeds group Syngenta has received approval from China’s Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM), the two companies said Wednesday. “This represents a further step towards the closing of the transaction, which is expected to take place in the second quarter of 2017,” they said […] Read more
ICE weekly outlook: Canola looks to rise with commercial interest
Reading Time: 2 minutes CNS Canada — ICE Futures Canada canola contracts finished mixed during the week ended Wednesday as intermonth trading took hold with traders exiting the May contract in favour of the more deferred values. The May contract gained $5.70, while some of the outside contracts lost a few days. Ideas that supplies of canola are tightening […] Read more
U.S. grains: Soybeans rebound on Argentina rains
Reading Time: 2 minutes Chicago | Reuters — U.S. soybeans rebounded on Wednesday from multi-month lows sparked a day earlier by fears of harvest delays in Argentina, while China’s return to the market after a holiday helped boost prices, analysts said. Corn and wheat followed the strength in soybeans, but rising stockpiles of corn-based ethanol pressured corn futures at […] Read more
China powers up
The world’s most populous country gets serious about farm machinery
Reading Time: 6 minutes Like so much of China, the country’s agriculture is in a state of transition. While some sectors of the industry are barreling full speed into mechanization, with impressive rates of technology adoption to match the latest in global production standards, the road to modernizing agricultural production isn’t always a smooth one. China is the world’s […] Read more
Beef makes the cut as Australia, China move to boost trade
Reading Time: 2 minutes Sydney | Reuters — Australia and China are expected to sign new bilateral agreements on beef exports, energy and security during a four-day visit by Chinese Premier Li Keqiang that began on Thursday. Li, the first sitting Chinese premier to visit Australia in 11 years, was welcomed to parliament in Canberra by Prime Minister Malcolm […] Read more
Brazil fears lost market share for meat industry
Reading Time: < 1 minute Brasilia | Reuters — Brazil’s meatpacking industry has been badly damaged by a police investigation into alleged unsanitary and corrupt practices, and could lose upward of 10 per cent of its global market share, Agriculture Minister Blairo Maggi said Wednesday. Maggi told a Senate committee that the main concern was with the China and Hong […] Read more
A message from April Stewart, Country Guide's Associate Editor
