A close-up of emerging corn seedlings north of London, Ont. on May 24, 2016. (Ralph Pearce photo)

U.S. grains: Corn nears one-year high on adverse weather

Reading Time: 2 minutes Chicago | Reuters — U.S. spot corn futures hit a near one-year high on Wednesday on forecasts for potentially stressful crop weather in the Midwest, while Minneapolis spring wheat futures retreated from a near two-year high. Soybeans followed corn higher. The weather jitters come as commodity funds hold large net short positions in corn, wheat […] Read more




(MGEX.com)

U.S. grains: Minneapolis wheat surges on northern Plains dryness

Reading Time: 2 minutes Chicago | Reuters — U.S. spring wheat futures set a 5-1/2-month high on Friday, buoyed by expanding dryness in the northern Plains production belt, analysts said. Minneapolis Grain Exchange July spring wheat settled up five cents at $5.83-3/4 per bushel after reaching $5.90, the highest spot price since mid-January (all figures US$). The spot contract […] Read more


(Michael Thompson photo courtesy ARS/USDA)

Early U.S. winter wheat harvest supports low-protein fears

Reading Time: 2 minutes Chicago | Reuters — The earliest reports from the start of the U.S. hard red winter wheat harvest underscored industry fears of a second straight year of low protein, a factor that shifts the market’s focus to prospects for the North American spring wheat crop, a higher-protein variety. “It’s probably a foregone conclusion at this […] Read more

MGEX spring wheat premium widening over winter wheat

Reading Time: < 1 minute CNS Canada –– Concerns over poor-quality North American wheat crops have seen the Minneapolis spring wheat premium widen over Kansas City winter wheat — and that spread could grow even larger heading into the summer, according to a U.S. analyst. The nearby MGEX spring wheat contract settled up 3.75 cents on Wednesday, while the corresponding […] Read more


Harpinder Randhawa, spring wheat and triticale breeder with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) in Lethbridge, stands in a field of soft white spring wheat. He is working on soft white spring varieties with improved resistance to disease and pre-harvest sprouting.

Soft white spring wheat spreads east

Ethanol drives new demand while research adapts SWSW to new regions

Reading Time: 5 minutes Until relatively recently, there were few producers outside the irrigation belt of southern Alberta who had ever heard of, much less planted, soft white spring wheat (SWSW). However, backed by 50 years of research, the wheat class is suddenly showing a new potential to be grown on more acres and in more areas, and for […] Read more

(MGEX.com)

MGEX spring wheat futures pull away from winter wheat

Reading Time: 2 minutes CNS Canada — Minneapolis spring wheat futures are pulling away from their winter wheat counterparts, as quality issues with the North American spring wheat crop bring in protein premiums, according to an analyst who said there was more room to the upside in spring wheat. Kansas City and Chicago winter wheat contracts hit 10-year lows […] Read more


(MGEX.com)

MGEX spring wheat shows strength

Reading Time: < 1 minute CNS Canada — Minneapolis (MGEX) spring wheat futures have climbed back to their highest levels in two months and could remain strong relative to other wheat classes over the next few months, according to an analyst. The nearby July 2016 contract is trading at about US$5.50 per bushel, while the July 2017 contract is now […] Read more

(Country Guide file photo)

Prairie spring wheat bids rise with dry weather

Reading Time: 2 minutes CNS Canada — Cash spring wheat bids across Western Canada improved during the week ended Friday, with prices receiving support from dry weather conditions in Alberta and Saskatchewan. Weakness in the Canadian dollar, which fell from the US80-cent mark to the mid-77-cent range between April 29 and Friday, added to the upside. Depending on the […] Read more