By Phil Franz-Warkentin, MarketsFarm
WINNIPEG, Jan. 4 (MarketsFarm) – The ICE Futures canola market was mostly lower at Wednesday’s close after trading to both sides of unchanged in choppy activity.
Losses in crude oil weighed on world vegetable oil markets, including canola, with strength in the Canadian dollar also bearish for the oilseed.
However, the underlying fundamentals remained supportive, helping temper the declines as crush margins remain favourable.
About 30,287 canola contracts traded on Wednesday, which compares with Tuesday when 18,931 contracts changed hands. Spreading accounted for 13,606 of the contracts traded.
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SOYBEAN futures at the Chicago Board of Trade were weaker on Wednesday, with losses in crude oil contributing to the declines in the grains and oilseeds.
Soybeans saw some follow-through selling after Tuesday’s declines, with technical damage done from a chart standpoint.
Recent rains in parts of Argentina were also slightly bearish, although the forecasts remain hot and dry going forward.
Meanwhile, conditions in Brazil are generally favourable for crop development, with expectations for record large soybean production out of the country.
Monthly crush data showed that 189.5 million bushels of soybeans were processed in the United States in November, which was down 3.6 per cent from the previous month and off the year ago level by 0.6 per cent. The year-to-date crush is slightly ahead of the year-ago pace.
CORN was also lower, after dropping below its 200-day moving average during the previous session.
Monthly ethanol data showed 447.4 million bushels of corn was used for producing the renewable fuel in November, down by 0.4 per cent on the month and 4.2 per cent on the year.
Brazilian corn exports are reportedly running well ahead of the year ago pace.
WHEAT was lower, with sharp declines in the European futures spilling into the North American market.
Crop condition ratings for the U.S. winter wheat crop were mixed, with a few areas showing a marked improvement in the good-to-excellent rating over the past month, while others saw conditions deteriorate.
