Reading Time: 2 minutes Compared to last week, western Canadian yearlings advanced $2-$5 while calves were unchanged to $3 higher. April live cattle futures are in a bull market; I’ve had many calls from producers and all I tell them is that April live cattle futures are in a bull market. Just as important, a market will not culminate […] Read more
Klassen: Improving margins underpin feeder market
U.S. beef packer margins soar as cattle prices fall
Reading Time: 2 minutes Chicago | Reuters — U.S. beef packers including Tyson Foods and Cargill are racking up historically high margins, thanks to slumping cattle prices amid a supply glut and as Americans turn to beef for their backyard summer barbecues. Supermarkets are stocking up on steaks, hot dogs and hamburgers for the May 26 U.S. Memorial Day […] Read more
Klassen: Seasonable temperatures enhance feeder market
Reading Time: 2 minutes Western Canadian yearling markets were actively trading $2-$5 above week-ago levels while prices in the Lethbridge area were up a solid $5 to as much as $10 in some cases. Improving pen conditions, along with a stronger fed cattle market, resulted in a surge of buying interest from southern Alberta operations. Orders from Feedlot Alley […] Read more
Trade rows spell gain, and pain, for U.S. grain exporters
Reading Time: 2 minutes Chicago | Reuters — Global grain marketers have seized upon trade tensions between the United States and several of its top export markets, including China, to turn around struggling trading units following one of the toughest years ever for the industry. After five years of bumper harvests worldwide that depressed crop prices, trading margins are […] Read more
Dreyfus posts profit rise in challenging market
Reading Time: < 1 minute Paris | Reuters — French commodities trader Louis Dreyfus reported a rise of almost four per cent in annual net profit on Wednesday buoyed by higher volumes but cautioned that industry challenges persist. Like its rivals, Dreyfus has faced lower margins linked to large inventories, low prices and reduced price volatility, prompting it to spin […] Read more
Klassen: Feeder market continues to soften
Reading Time: 2 minutes Compared to last week, yearlings and heavier calves traded $6 to as much as $10 lower. Colder temperatures, along with lacklustre feedlot demand, set a negative tone early in the week. The downward spiral caused the market to be quite variable across the Prairies. It was not uncommon to see 800- to 850-lb. steers trade […] Read more
Canada’s weekly canola crush tops 200,000 tonnes
Reading Time: < 1 minute CNS Canada — Canadian canola crushers saw their second busiest week ever during the week ended Wednesday, according to the latest data from the Canadian Oilseed Processors Association. The canola crush in the latest weekly reporting period came in at 204,820 tonnes, only slightly off the record of 208,268 tonnes hit in March. A total […] Read more
Farmers to deal with stronger loonie for rest of 2017
Reading Time: 2 minutes CNS Canada — Higher interest rates and a stronger Canadian dollar relative to U.S. currency is giving Canadian farmers a double whammy. According to Farm Credit Canada’s chief agricultural economist, it’s also a situation farmers will likely have to deal with for at least the remainder of the year. J.P. Gervais said he thinks farmers […] Read more
A message from April Stewart, Country Guide's Associate Editor
