Canada’s geographical centre is set to reach out to the world in May, as host of a business-to-business (B2B) forum for agribusinesses and other sectors to network across the globe from one spot. That forum is one component of Centrallia, in which over 700 participants from Canada and over 30 other countries are expected at […] Read more
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Klassen: Feeder cattle steady but demand remains sluggish
Western Canadian feeder cattle prices traded in line with week-ago levels on average, though the market was quite variable across the Prairies. Favourable temperatures in southern Alberta enhanced demand on all weight categories, especially on grassers from 500 to 650 lbs. Higher-quality backgrounded cattle were also $4-$8 higher in certain cases in Alberta. In Saskatchewan […] Read more
U.S. livestock: Cash price optimism nudges CME live cattle upward
Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures gained slightly on Tuesday in anticipation of steady-to-higher prices for market-ready, or cash, cattle possibly before Friday, traders said. April closed 0.125 cent/lb. higher at 137.1 cents, and June ended up 0.175 cent to 126.35 (all figures US$). Cash bids surfaced in Texas and Nebraska […] Read more
Fertilizer maker Yara to cut costs, raise investments
Oslo | Reuters –– Norwegian fertilizer maker Yara plans to cut operating costs and raise investments to become more competitive and grow its business, it said in an update ahead of an investor meeting on Tuesday. The company raised its estimate for 2016 capital expenditure to 17.9 billion Norwegian crowns (C$2.8 billion) from previous guidance […] Read more
Maple Leaf profit beats as margins improve
Reuters — Canadian pork processor Maple Leaf Foods posted a better-than-expected fourth-quarter profit as margins in its prepared meats business improved. Adjusted operating profit in the meat products group, which includes brands such as Schneiders and the company’s namesake Maple Leaf brand, was $54.6 million, compared with a year-ago loss of $19.1 million. The Mississauga-based […] Read more
Glencore to cut more debt as 2015 profit falls
London | Reuters — Glencore stepped up its debt reduction plan on Tuesday by promising to offload more assets to shore up its finances to cope with a commodities rout that wiped around a third off its 2015 profit. The Swiss mining and trading house, whose agricultural arm includes Canadian grain handling giant Viterra, aims […] Read more
U.S. grains: Wheat to multiyear lows on strong dollar, crop ratings
Chicago | Reuters — U.S. wheat futures fell to multi-year lows on Tuesday, pressured by strength in the dollar and better crop conditions than last year in the Plains, analysts said. Soybean and corn futures declined for a sixth straight session, with the most-active May contracts in both markets falling to multi-week lows. At the […] Read more
U.S. EPA moves to pull crop insecticide from sale
CLARIFIED, March 7, 2016: Chicago | Reuters — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said Tuesday it was moving to halt sale of insecticides from chemical firms Bayer and Nichino America containing an active ingredient, flubendiamide, found to pose risks to the environment. Bayer CropScience had anticipated the action after rejecting the EPA’s request to voluntarily […] Read more
U.S. livestock: CME live cattle close mixed
Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures closed mixed on Monday, helped by last Friday’s steady-to-better cash prices but pressured by profit-taking on the last trading day of the month, traders said. The February contract, which expired on Monday at noon CT, closed up 1.95 cents/lb. at 139.5 cents (all figures US$). […] Read more
Paterson to build new central Alta. elevator
Winnipeg’s Paterson Grain has lined up property off the QE2 Highway in central Alberta for its next inland grain terminal. The company announced Monday it would start construction “immediately” at a site near Bowden, Alta., about 40 km south of Red Deer, to start taking grain in 2017. The facility, when complete, will have storage […] Read more
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