A bag of beans sits atop bulk soybeans at a Walmart in Beijing on Sept. 23, 2019.

Oilseeds draw strength from China’s recent market action

Oil’s fading fortunes put pressure on canola, not to mention other crops

Canola prices showed impressive resilience during the week ended April 24 after being battered by outside markets earlier in the week. On April 20, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil futures dropped into negative territory to close at minus US$37.63, as traders bailed out of the May contract before its expiry date. The June contract



Canola south of Ethelton, Sask. on Aug. 3, 2017. (Dave Bedard photo)

Supply chain working but canola groups have concerns

Federal field trials need to continue and growers need protective equipment, they say

There have been no issues so far with supplies of inputs and parts, transportation or oilseed processing during the pandemic, canola industry officials report. “We’ve been really focused on making sure farmers have access to inputs and resources to get the 2020 crop in the ground,” Canola Council of Canada president Jim Everson said during





Traders and farmers alike will eventually need some sort of guidance as to what’s being planted in 2020.

Farmers, traders will have to make do without crop area report

StatsCan isn’t sure it has enough information for a credible report

Statistics Canada will not issue its crop area report on April 24 as originally scheduled. The COVID-19 pandemic has forced the federal agency to rethink its tasks, and one major change was to postpone a number of upcoming agricultural reports. Ken Ball, a trader for PI Financial in Winnipeg, suggests the markets can do just

ICE Futures May 2020 canola (candlesticks) and CBOT May 2020 soybean oil (yellow line). (Barchart)

ICE weekly outlook: Canola gains strength at midweek

MarketsFarm — After showing considerable weakness in prior trading sessions, canola contracts tried to regain some ground at midweek. Ken Ball of P.I. Financial in Winnipeg said canola was oversold due to bearish sentiments from outside markets earlier in the week, but prices were steadily bouncing back. Nearby ICE Futures canola was down Monday by