Over the break US futures have generally been flat, a few cents down and a few cents up so little is expected to change on the back of US futures here today. The AUD is a little softer than it was on Wednesday and in the case of canola it should more than counter any negative influence from a softer ICE futures market last night.

Data out of the Saskatchewan Wheat Development Commission indicated that CWAD1 durum was worth around C$408.10 FOB Great Lakes on January 23rd. This would indicate a cost to FOB of around $115 from central Saskatchewan, roughly $30 – $40 higher than Australian values. Ocean rates from the east coast of the US to a Mediterranean home are roughly US$45 / tonne. So CWAD1 durum landed North Africa is roughly US$350 landed. Ocean freight from Australia to North Africa is roughly US$34 / tonne. It is hard to confirm some of these ocean rates. With this assumption in mind it would make CWAD1 durum worth about AUD$383 NTP Newcastle. At the end of the day all these comparisons between different locations and grades seem to make little difference as to what the Australian price currently is.
US weekly wheat export sales of 853.4kt supported prices and surprised many traders. As world buyers continue to search for high quality wheat, spreads to the upper grades continue to improve.