Star Wars and grain markets

Star Wars and grain markets

Expert’s Radar: Divergence from established patterns isn’t common, but it happens

“This is the way.” If you’ve watched The Mandalorian, you’ve heard the phrase many times. I can’t speak to all the Star Wars lore, but it’s an enjoyable program perhaps best described as cowboys in outer space. The central Mandalorians of the show follow their own strict honour-bound creed, centred on the armour they wear

There’s little doubt the abundance of oilseeds in the world market will weigh on prices.

Total oilseed production eases back

USDA sees major drop in some production areas, but stays steady on Canadian canola

REDUCTIONS USDA sees major drop in some production areas, but stays steady on Canadian canola

Production of the world’s oilseeds was trimmed back by the United States Department of Agriculture last week, which forecast 625.38 million tonnes for 2022-23 in its world markets and trade report. In March, the USDA pegged global production at 629.89 million tonnes. But despite the reduction in April, it’s still a significant increase from the


Recent price drops hide wheat’s weather situation

Recent price drops hide wheat’s weather situation

Southern U.S. winter wheat-growing areas remain in drought

As the calendar turned over to April, the focus for traders on the Chicago Board of Trade turned toward weather. There can be a tendency to either react based on recent weather events, ignore potential long-term weather trends, or both. In the case of wheat, the recent weakness shown in all three major U.S. varieties

Attention will turn to the weather as spring planting approaches.

Canola futures edge downward after good run

New crop canola was especially hard hit and now the trade is watching weather

As the old saying goes, all good things must come to an end. That’s exactly what happened to canola futures on the Intercontinental Exchange at the close of trading March 30, as the Canadian oilseed marked its first losses since March 22. That past Wednesday, the nearby May contract lost $9.40 to close at $720


Data drawn from www.macrotrends.net shows peaks in the grain price index, and their corresponding valleys, since 1970.

What goes up…

Barring a sudden market shock, the grain market looks like it is losing steam

Markets are an assembly of moving parts and, in this environment, inflation is a major component. If you can get the inflation versus deflation trade right, it will go a long way toward understanding how all markets could move. The commodity and consumer price inflation of the past few years started in 2020, with COVID-19

Soybean complex crushed by selloffs

Soybean complex crushed by selloffs

All eyes are on South America as the bean crop comes off

Canola had another week of sharp losses before bouncing back with a double-digit gain on March 23, but the Chicago soy complex also had a week to forget. The May soybean contract fell to US$14.1950 per bushel at the end of March 23 after a one-day, 29-cent drop. It was the ninth negative session in



People have been eating the crop for millennia, but in Western Canada, food grain millet is just getting its feet underneath it and there are plenty of hurdles yet to clear.

Could 2023 see a millet market makeover?

Millet for grain can work in Manitoba, but it’s not the first choice and markets have far to go

Reynald Gauthier isn’t Western Canada’s average millet grower. The mouths he’s feeding are human. Gauthier, founder of Millet King Foods, has been a champion for the ancient grain, as well as a major seed provider, since the early 2000s. Just over 600 acres of Proso red millet are seeded on his farm near St. Claude


An Australian canola crop near Smeaton, about 100 km northwest of Melbourne. Officials predict Australia’s canola harvest will hit 8.6 million tonnes, which could cut into Canada’s export prospects.

Canola falls below $800 support level

A decline in Chicago soyoil values has kicked out a support pillar

It finally happened: canola broke below its support level of $800 per tonne. For quite some time, the Canadian oilseed has been rangebound at $800-$900 per tonne. As with a stuck vehicle, that rocking back and forth gave way to old- and new-crop prices being pulled out of that rut. One element that provided the

Canola industry ready to move forward

Canola industry ready to move forward

The Canola Council of Canada celebrated a return to normalcy at its annual meeting at the Canadian Crops Convention in Ottawa. “Our theme this year is ‘from adversity to opportunity’ and I think that’s very fitting,” said Jim Everson, the group’s president. Production has rebounded following the drought of 2021, meaning there’s opportunity to develop