Market Commentary
The overnight session opened with little price direction. Grain and soy prices were down just slightly, although they recovered enough to trade in mixed fashion but very light volume. At the morning recess, corn and soybeans were in slightly positive territory, but wheat was a little weaker. Th...
Middle East, Mediterranean and Africa Regional Analysis
Regional Updates MIDDLE EAST/MEDITERRANEAN COMMENTS Morocco has reportedly reduced the import tariff on grains from Russia to zero, although it has not been a major importer of that origin with only a few wheat shipments from there to date in 2018. Russia does hope that it will import more, and...
Market Commentary
Wheat, corn and soybean markets started higher Sunday night, and they held those small gains throughout the entire session. The relatively light volume then continued through today to start the week before Christmas. The market had been expecting an announcement of additional soybean export sal...
Mercosur Regional Analysis
Soybeans Market Overview The soybeans market was surprised last week when the U.S. government announced that 1.4 MMT of soybeans had been sold to China. There were talks of potential sales up to 4 MMT, which current information seems to indicate have not occurred. Nevertheless, the announcement...
Southeast Europe Regional Analysis
Milling Wheat The Black Sea market is firmer as stocks are decreasing. Russia has already exported 21 MMT since the start of the campaign, and those stocks in the southern region are significantly depleted. The remaining wheat must be transported from areas located far from the ports at a highe...
Market Commentary
It is hard to keep track of the rumors flying around concerning Chinese plans to buy U.S. soybeans. Their most common thread has China buying 5-8 MMT, although there are several versions of this rumor. One has Sinograin and COFCO, a state-owned trading company, as the buyers since both would pr...
Black Sea Regional Analysis
Russian Grain Markets: 3-7 December 2018 Active demand drove domestic grain prices higher except for corn, which had a slight decline in the South. The average milling wheat export price rose +$2/MT to $230/MT FOB Black Sea, but purchase prices at seaports were stable in RUB expression while sl...
Market Commentary
It has been more than 10 days since the Trump-Xi meeting in Buenos Aires wherein, according to President Trump and others in attendance, China agreed to purchase a large quantity of U.S agricultural and energy products. Yet there is no apparent sign to date that actual business has occurred. Gr...
Oilseed Highlights: China and U.S. Soybean Imports; WASDE and the Soy Sector
China Apparently Deciding How Many U.S. Soybean to Import At their meeting in Buenos Aires, President Trump was able to get a commitment from President Xi to import a substantial volume of U.S. soybeans and other commodities during the 90-day truce in the trade war. Hong Kong’s South Chin...
WASDE Corn
USDA notes the following about Coarse Grains: This month’s 2018/19 U.S. corn outlook is for lower corn used for ethanol, reduced imports, and larger ending stocks. Imports are lowered based on observed trade to date. Corn used to produce ethanol is reduced 50 million bushels to 5.6 billio...
The December WASDE
In truth, there is not much to analyze in USDA’s December WASDE. It contained no changes in estimated U.S. yields or corn and soybean production levels. Those will come as the final such estimates in the January WASDE. However, there were some changes in production estimates for other cou...
Middle East, Mediterranean and Africa Regional Analysis
Regional Updates MIDDLE EAST/MEDITERRANEAN COMMENTS Middle East/North Africa (MENA) buyers of Ukraine’s wheat and corn are very concerned about the situation that has developed between that country and Russia in the Kerch Strait that abuts Crimea. While Russia says that the strait is oper...
Market Commentary
The overnight session opened with little price direction. Grain and soy prices were down just slightly, although they recovered enough to trade in mixed fashion but very light volume. At the morning recess, corn and soybeans were in slightly positive territory, but wheat was a little weaker. Th...
Middle East, Mediterranean and Africa Regional Analysis
Regional Updates MIDDLE EAST/MEDITERRANEAN COMMENTS Morocco has reportedly reduced the import tariff on grains from Russia to zero, although it has not been a major importer of that origin with only a few wheat shipments from there to date in 2018. Russia does hope that it will import more, and...
Market Commentary
Wheat, corn and soybean markets started higher Sunday night, and they held those small gains throughout the entire session. The relatively light volume then continued through today to start the week before Christmas. The market had been expecting an announcement of additional soybean export sal...
Mercosur Regional Analysis
Soybeans Market Overview The soybeans market was surprised last week when the U.S. government announced that 1.4 MMT of soybeans had been sold to China. There were talks of potential sales up to 4 MMT, which current information seems to indicate have not occurred. Nevertheless, the announcement...
Southeast Europe Regional Analysis
Milling Wheat The Black Sea market is firmer as stocks are decreasing. Russia has already exported 21 MMT since the start of the campaign, and those stocks in the southern region are significantly depleted. The remaining wheat must be transported from areas located far from the ports at a highe...
Market Commentary
It is hard to keep track of the rumors flying around concerning Chinese plans to buy U.S. soybeans. Their most common thread has China buying 5-8 MMT, although there are several versions of this rumor. One has Sinograin and COFCO, a state-owned trading company, as the buyers since both would pr...
Black Sea Regional Analysis
Russian Grain Markets: 3-7 December 2018 Active demand drove domestic grain prices higher except for corn, which had a slight decline in the South. The average milling wheat export price rose +$2/MT to $230/MT FOB Black Sea, but purchase prices at seaports were stable in RUB expression while sl...
Market Commentary
It has been more than 10 days since the Trump-Xi meeting in Buenos Aires wherein, according to President Trump and others in attendance, China agreed to purchase a large quantity of U.S agricultural and energy products. Yet there is no apparent sign to date that actual business has occurred. Gr...
Oilseed Highlights: China and U.S. Soybean Imports; WASDE and the Soy Sector
China Apparently Deciding How Many U.S. Soybean to Import At their meeting in Buenos Aires, President Trump was able to get a commitment from President Xi to import a substantial volume of U.S. soybeans and other commodities during the 90-day truce in the trade war. Hong Kong’s South Chin...
WASDE Corn
USDA notes the following about Coarse Grains: This month’s 2018/19 U.S. corn outlook is for lower corn used for ethanol, reduced imports, and larger ending stocks. Imports are lowered based on observed trade to date. Corn used to produce ethanol is reduced 50 million bushels to 5.6 billio...
The December WASDE
In truth, there is not much to analyze in USDA’s December WASDE. It contained no changes in estimated U.S. yields or corn and soybean production levels. Those will come as the final such estimates in the January WASDE. However, there were some changes in production estimates for other cou...
Middle East, Mediterranean and Africa Regional Analysis
Regional Updates MIDDLE EAST/MEDITERRANEAN COMMENTS Middle East/North Africa (MENA) buyers of Ukraine’s wheat and corn are very concerned about the situation that has developed between that country and Russia in the Kerch Strait that abuts Crimea. While Russia says that the strait is oper...