• CBOT wheat 420.5c,
• Kansas wheat 426.25c,
• Corn 346.25c,
• Soybeans 960.5c,
• Winnipeg canola down C$2.20 to $498.4,
• Matif canola down €2 to €350.75
• Crude oil up 0.51c to $US64.81 per barrel,
• AUD up to 0.797c,
• CAD down to 1.242c (AUDCAD 0.990),
• EUR up to 1.227c (AUDEUR 0.649).

Wheat

Matif wheat finished €1 lower, with a stronger Euro combining with limited demand prospects to forge new contract lows. Russian prices remain stable to higher, with the Ruble rallying 0.5 per cent, preventing grower/fob liquidity.

Feedgrain

The Saudi feed barley tender was aggressively offered at prices well below Australian replacement.  This was to be expected, given the premiums Australian barley has been getting in China compared with other origins that do not work there for phytosanitary and trade restrictions. Prices ranged from US$212-$220 c&f for Feb-Mar shipments, and the volume was 1.062 million tonnes, slightly higher than the original tender. This is not expected to have any impact on Australian prices, given Australia’s tight balance sheet and strong demand profile.

Canola

Canola gave back most of Friday’s gains, again failing to sustain a break through technical resistance at C$500 in the May contract. A stronger CAD took the pressure off fund shorts that drove the market up on Friday. Strength in palm and crude oil were not enough to keep things supported today.

Australia

The Aussie dollar continued to tear higher, finishing up 0.7pc and looking to push to test old highs at 81 cents. It appears that today’s movement was due to USD weakness more than anything else. This will definitely restrict volumes in cash markets today, and we should start to an appreciation in basis and an inverse in nearby track markets, presuming that growers do not panic sell.