Grain Market Report
March 2008
Sunflower
Pricing and supply are very volatile at this time. In an effort to encourage more acres to get planted and to compete with other commodities, sunflower crushers and processors have had to move their bids much higher. Opportunity to beat the price increases have disappeared. The Global Oil market is keeping pressure on all Oil crops, this trend is expected to continue. Oilseed, in particular will continue to stay strong as is competes with other oil crops for acreage this spring. One bright spot is the mid west is experiencing delayed planting on various crops. Oil seed sales are reported to be up as producers look to alternative crops to plant with a larger planting and harvesting window such as Oil Seed. Going forward pricing at these levels will curb usage and consumers will look at mixes as an alternative.
Nyjer Seed
Availability is reasonable with a small bottle neck at the fumigators. Pricing remains settled but firm and is anticipated to remain this way for the foreseeable future.
Peanuts
Both Peanut Pickouts and Peanuts in Shell are under pressure. Peanut Halves continue to be influenced by a very volatile oil market. Off shore shipments of in shell peanuts have also been very limited putting increased pressure on domestic inventories. We would recommend you not be caught short on peanut products as they look to stay strong over the next several months.
Millets & Milos
Milo has seen sharp increases in the past few weeks. Milo trades in the Corn family, corn was relatively under priced going into the spring planting season. To gain acres we have seen a steady increase on the bid by traders for corn products. This pressure has resulted in Milo increasing along with corn. With favourable planting conditions Millets will be the last crop to be planted. It currently has one of the lower rates of return as it pertains to yield and related price. We anticipate Millets will continue to remain strong over the next several months.
Corn / Wheat
We are anticipating a very large Wheat crop in this immediate area as well as much of North America. We have seen dramatic price drops in the Wheat market over the past number of weeks. Many end users such as Bakeries and Flour mills will be limiting their usage until new crop becomes available, first sign of price relief in any product for many months. Corn is still experiencing pricing pressure . The March USDA report resulted in less acres being allocated to corn and less carryout stocks. The market has reacted with very steady increases. Currently the mid west Corn Belt is receiving sufficient precipitation to delay planting. Corn will stay volatile over the next number of months until after pollination in mid July.
Canadian Dollar
Most recently the Canadian dollar has returned to levels closer to par with the U.S. currency. This is good news for manufactures and others looking for relief from the highs of mid November 2007. The one issue which has cushioned the impact of grain price increases here in Canada is the increase in the dollar. Although welcomed by grain users it is not a guarantee that this will happen each time we see huge increases. Canada is rich in raw materials, metals, oils and grains. If and when these sectors see significant increases our dollar will tend to move up with these commodities.
If you require additional information or you would like firm pricing on a specific commodity, please contact us at 905-779-2473 or email Ken, Rob or Robbin.
