In the US wheat futures at Chicago were a touch firmer while spring wheat futures at Minneapolis were a little softer. Reports of better than average quality and yields out of Canada will weigh on prime grade wheat values in the short to mid-term. Transposing that statement we may at least find that a high quality wheat crop this year might assist in widening the wheat / feed grain spread globally as less wheat is fed off, possibly helping corn values higher.
Still at Chicago we see soybeans sold down on technical selling, looks a little like a buy the rumour / sell the fact type market to me. Reports of further US bean sales to China were ignored. The weaker soybean market spilled over to lower bids in ICE canola futures and Paris rapeseed. In SW Saskatchewan cash canola was also weaker by C$1.56 / tonne for a December lift.
Still in the Canadian cash market we see 1CWAD13 values were steady to slightly firmer for a Dec lift. A back of an envelope conversion would see this number and the stronger AUD wipe off around AUD$8.00 on Friday’s conversion to an equivalent DR1 port price. So expect local durum values to be flat to slightly weaker here today.
The USDA crop progress report, out after the close, pegged corn at 15% harvested and no change in the G/E rating. Soybeans were 20% in the bin and rated 64% G/E (+1%), sorghum 31% harvested, G/E unchanged and US winter wheat sowing was estimated at 35% complete. Winter wheat sowing in Russia is pegged at 60% complete but conditions have been less than ideal with dry weather not seeing the crop off to a great start. A good spring can fix this but generally we don’t see big yields after a poor start. Ukraine is also dry.