Container ships pass through locks on the Panama Canal in this file photo. (CIA.gov)

Panama Canal water levels at historic lows, restrictions to remain

Lake feeding canal low on rainfall

Panama City | Reuters — The Panama Canal’s water levels have not recovered enough as the end of the rainy season approaches and limits on daily transit and vessel draft will stay in place for the rest of the year and throughout 2024, the waterway’s authority said on Tuesday. The restrictions, implemented earlier this year

Green lentils. (Savany/iStock/Getty Images)

Pulse weekly outlook: Poor monsoon rains cut into India production

Canadian crops also expected lower

MarketsFarm — Disappointing monsoon rains in India this year are expected to cut into the country’s pulse production, according to reports out of the country. Crop production in India is highly dependent on the monsoon rains that typically soak the country from June through September, but the moisture to date was about nine per cent


CBOT December 2023 soft red winter wheat with 20-day moving average, MGEX December 2023 hard red spring wheat (yellow line) and K.C. December 2023 hard red winter wheat (orange line). (Barchart)

U.S. grains: Wheat up off three-month low as Australian crop declines

U.S. corn, soy crop ratings fall more than expected

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Board of Trade wheat futures edged higher on Tuesday, after hitting a three-month low, amid short covering and concerns about dry weather threatening production in export hubs including Australia. Corn futures also rose, while the soybean market eased as traders awaited the start of U.S. harvesting. After the markets closed,

CME October 2023 lean hogs with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: CME lean hogs near one-month high on export outlook

CME cattle futures close lower

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange lean hog futures neared a one-month high on Tuesday on expectations for increased U.S. pork exports and tightening supplies. Demand for U.S. pork is benefiting as high pig prices in Europe cause global importers to shift some business to the United States, where pig prices have been weak,


CBOT December 2023 soft red winter wheat with 20-day moving average, MGEX December 2023 hard red spring wheat (yellow line) and K.C. December 2023 hard red winter wheat (orange line). (Barchart)

U.S. grains: Wheat dips after earlier strength

Black Sea supplies weigh on market

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. wheat prices reversed earlier gains to close lower on Friday, as markets weighed tight global stocks against the prospect of hefty Russian wheat production and efforts to renew a Black Sea grain deal. Chicago soybeans and corn also climbed after month-end positioning pushed futures lower much of the week and

CME October 2023 live cattle with 20- and 50-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: CME live cattle ease on softer cash markets

Trade watching for increased demand for hogs

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures eased on Friday, ending the week slightly lower as cash trade eased, though the cattle market continues to trade mostly sideways, analysts said. “The market’s basically saying — we’ve got stable trade right now for a couple months,” said Rich Nelson, chief strategist at Allendale


CME October 2023 live cattle with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: CME live cattle up ahead of long weekend

Lean hogs follow cash hog index lower

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures ticked upward Thursday, while packers backed off of buying ahead of the Labour Day holiday week that will limit slaughter, analysts said. “There was some light trade today, slightly lower than last week,” said Doug Houghton, technical analyst at Brock Capital Management. “I don’t know

CBOT November 2023 soybeans with 20- and 50-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. grains: Soybeans end month up on crop stress

Wheat down as global supplies weigh on U.S. prices

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago soybeans fell for a third consecutive session on Thursday, but ended the month higher as recent export activity and fears that dry weather damaged crops lent support. Wheat ended lower after trading both sides of even, pressured by plentiful global supplies. Corn ended the day and the month lower after


Vessels are seen as they await inspection under the Black Sea Grain Initiative, brokered by the UN and Turkey, in the southern anchorage of the Bosphorus at Istanbul on Dec. 11, 2022. (File photo: Reuters/Yoruk Isik)

Russia says will have talks with Turkey about alternative to Black Sea deal

Plan calls for Qatar's support to move Russian grain

Reuters — Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Turkish counterpart Hakan Fidan will discuss a proposal by Moscow for an alternative to the Black Sea grain deal when they meet this week, Lavrov’s ministry said Wednesday. Under the plan, Russia would send a million tons of grain to Turkey at a discounted price, with financial

CME October 2023 lean hogs with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: Lean hogs climb as traders eye seasonal supply shifts

Cattle futures down ahead of long weekend

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange lean hog futures climbed on Wednesday, finding support as traders gauged pork demand and watched for signs of a seasonal influx of market-ready hogs. “We still have an index that’s higher than the October. It usually doesn’t close the gap until we get into September a week or