Articles by Karen Braun | Manitoba Co-operator

Comment: Winning the trade war?

Will the U.S.-China trade war end up worthwhile for U.S. soybeans?

By Karen Braun October 16, 2018

China’s absence from the U.S. soybean market has put tremendous pressure on both soybean growers and Chicago-traded soybean futures over the last several months. But the United States’ new trade pact with Mexico and Canada may offer some hope for a similar outcome with major U.S. trade partner China. The United States and Canada reached

Comment, Markets

Opinion: U.S. soy trade stellar in short term

Longer term the outlook for the Chinese market gets very hazy

By Karen Braun August 20, 2018

Market analysts have been trying to gauge China’s forward bean usage as it remains locked in a tit-for-tat tariff dispute with the United States, and the conflict has prompted threats from the East Asian country to severely reduce or ban U.S. bean imports. The future of U.S. soybean trade with China has also been a

Farmers may be hesitant to plant soybeans next year due to market uncertainties related to the U.S.-China trade war, and if so, this could mean more corn acres and a potential glut in the market in 2019.

Comment, Opinion

Opinion: Corn may be an unintended trade war victim in 2019

Wheat is also likely to see the effect of a stampede out of beans

By Karen Braun August 13, 2018

U.S. corn supply is predicted to plunge by 23 per cent over the next year, but the tighter domestic market may be a short-lived phenomenon pending the resolution of the U.S.-China trade war. The world’s two largest economies have been embroiled in a trade battle in which Beijing hit U.S. soybeans with a 25 per

Comment, Opinion

Comment: Selling out early

Trade uncertainty is souring investors’ views of grain markets

By Karen Braun July 17, 2018

Speculators spent the month of June selling Chicago-traded futures and options, specifically corn and soybeans, as if record U.S. crops were already in the bag. But the trade dispute between the United States and China, the world’s largest soybean buyer, has driven market uncertainty. It was confirmed in mid-June that both parties would enforce tariffs

Chicago-traded soybean futures recently reached three-week highs as China announced to its buyers that its state-wide boycott of U.S. soybeans had ended.

Opinion

Opinion: Funds cautious toward CBOT soybeans despite U.S.-China truce

By Karen Braun June 11, 2018

Chicago-traded soybean futures reached three-week highs May 21 as China appears to be coming back to the U.S. market after a state-wide boycott, but speculative investors seem to be taking a cautious approach. The trade tension between the United States and China, the world’s leading buyer of soybeans, has weighed heavily on agriculture markets ever

Opinion

Opinion: China opting for soy plantings over corn would be ideal for rest of world

By Karen Braun May 28, 2018

If Chinese farmers have ditched corn in favour of planting soybeans as some recent forecasts suggest, this is the most favourable scenario for a drawdown in global stocks of both commodities. The idea is that China cannot possibly increase soybean output in a way that would seriously threaten its need for imports, at least in

Markets, Oilseeds, Opinion

Don’t panic over lack of Chinese soy demand

By Karen Braun May 14, 2018

Chinese demand for U.S. soybeans has slowed significantly in the past couple of weeks, worrying some market participants that this is a hint of things to come. But perhaps they have forgotten that sluggish Chinese business is normal this time of year. It is possible that Chinese importers are aggressively avoiding U.S. beans at the

Comment/Feedback, Opinion

U.S. to stay stuffed with soybeans despite Argentine losses

Demand for U.S. soybeans remains stubbornly depressed due to high global stocks

By Karen Braun March 13, 2018

The soy complex may be rallying on the Chicago Board of Trade, but the outlook for U.S. supply retains its bearish feel, despite significant losses to Argentina’s soybean crop amid parched conditions. Last month, the U.S. Department of Agriculture cut domestic soybean exports to 2.1 billion bushels, some three per cent smaller than last year’s

Crops, Opinion

China’s sorghum snub could turn U.S. farmers toward corn and soy

By Karen Braun February 20, 2018

China may have just handed farmers in the U.S. Plains a good reason to maintain or increase the already elevated corn and soybean acreage this spring. On Feb. 4, China launched an anti-dumping and anti-subsidy investigation into imports of sorghum from the United States in a move that many analysts see as politically motivated. Regardless

Markets, Oilseeds, Opinion

U.S. soybean exports falter in October while Brazil’s shine

By Karen Braun December 19, 2017

The market is closely watching U.S. soybean exports to see whether the 2017-18 campaign will stumble amid record global supply, and October’s data raises a red flag. U.S. corn and wheat demand is also staring down a global supply glut and stiff international competition, and October export volumes were some of the smallest in recent

Coronavirus stalls talks with China on canola ban

Fund traders still bearish on canola

U.S. grains: Soy, wheat, corn close lower after early gains

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