Global Ag News for Mar 22

 TODAY—WEEKLY EXPORT INSPECTIONS—

Overnight trade has SRW Wheat down roughly 2 cents, HRW down 3; HRS Wheat down 3, Corn is down 3 cents; Soybeans unchanged to down 2 cents; Soymeal down $1.50, and Soyoil up 35 points.

For the week, SRW Wheat prices were down roughly 11 cents; HRW down 18; HRS down 6; Corn was up 10 cents; Soybeans up 1 cent; Soymeal up $7.00, and; Soyoil down 230 points. Crushing margins were down 10 cents at $0.60 (July); Oil share down 2% at 38%.

Chinese Ag futures (May) settled up 5 yuan in soybeans, up 19 in Corn, up 35 in Soymeal, down 6 in Soyoil, and up 64 in Palm Oil.

Malaysian palm oil prices were up 48 ringgit at 3,772 (basis June) at midsession supported by improving March export data.

Argentina remains favorable for late season crop development, although there will be a few pockets of moisture stress most likely in the southwest part of the nation. Soil moisture will carry crops through the drier days and the lack of excessive heat will keep evaporation rates low enough to conserve that soil moisture. The worst of this year’s crop stress and greatest pressure to reduce production in 2021 has passed and crops will finish the growing season without much further decline in potential yield.

Concern will rise about long term soil moisture in Brazil especially if monsoonal rain withdraws normally in late April. The below average precipitation and normal end to the rainy season could raise the potential for crop moisture stress for Safrinha corn, cotton and other late season crops

U.S. weather during the weekend was drier biased and that was welcome after recent moisture abundance. No precipitation fell in the Great Plains, Midwest, Delta or interior parts of the southeastern states. Temperatures were unusually warm in the northern Plains during the weekend with highs in the 60s and lower 70s Fahrenheit. Drought in these areas continues to be a great concern. Some relief is expected later this spring, but dryness will likely return later this summer.

The player sheet had funds net sellers of 3,000 contracts of SRW Wheat; bought 17,000 Corn; net bought 12,000 Soybeans; bought 6,000 lots of Soymeal, and; net bought 2,000 lots of Soyoil.

We estimate Managed Money net long 5,000 contracts of SRW Wheat; long 356,000 Corn; net long 150,000 Soybeans; net long 62,000 lots of Soymeal, and; long 87,000 Soyoil.

Preliminary Open Interest saw SRW Wheat futures up roughly 2,300 contracts; HRW Wheat up 1,800; Corn down 13,900; Soybeans up 2,500 contracts; Soymeal down 1,800 lots, and; Soyoil down 2,800.

There were no changes in registrations—Registrations total 40 contracts for SRW Wheat; ZERO Oats; Corn ZERO; Soybeans 60; Soyoil 1,218 lots; Soymeal 175; Rice 1,013; HRW Wheat 1,291, and; HRS 710.

Tender Activity—S. Korea bought 50,000t Australian wheat—Pakistan bought 300,000t optional-origin wheat—

• U.S. MARCH 1 ALL CATTLE ON FEED 102.0 PCT (TRADE ESTIMATE 101.4 PCT) – USDA
• U.S. FEBRUARY CATTLE PLACED ON FEED
• 98.0 PCT (TRADE ESTIMATE 97.6 PCT) – USDA
• U.S. FEBRUARY CATTLE MARKETED 98.0 PCT (TRADE ESTIMATE 98.1 PCT) – USDA

China sold 1.63 million tonnes of wheat, or 40.6% of the total offer, at an auction of state reserves last week, the National Grain Trade Center said in a statement on Friday.

The volume sold, at an average price of 2,356 yuan ($362.04) per tonne, fell from the prior week on falling corn prices.

China’s soybean imports from Brazil fell sharply in the first two months of 2021 compared to the same period last year, customs data showed on Saturday, as rain delayed some shipments from the top exporter.

—China brought in 1.03 million tonnes of the oilseed from Brazil in Jan-Feb, down nearly 80% from 5.14 million tonnes a year earlier, data from the General Administration of Custom showed.

—Shipments from the United States to China in Jan-Feb totalled 11.9 million tonnes, nearly double the volume of 6.1 million tonnes in the previous year.

—China’s total imports of soybeans in the first two months of 2021 fell 0.8% to 13.41 million tonnes.

—Crushers in Rizhao, Shandong, a major soybean processing hub, can make around 158 yuan ($24.28) for every tonne of the oilseed they crush as of March 19, well above historical average levels in the past 10 years.

Workers at the Argentine grains port hub of Rosario ended an hours-long strike on Friday, after the government ordered labor unions to negotiate a settlement with management. The General Labor Confederation of San Lorenzo, which represents workers in the northern part of the Rosario grains hub, began the strike at the start of the morning shift over claims that one of the export companies operating in the area had laid off workers without proper compensation.

Russia’s March exports of wheat, barley and maize (corn) are estimated at 2.7 million tonnes, down from 4.3 million tonnes in February, the SovEcon agriculture consultancy said.

Russian wheat export prices fell for the third consecutive week last week amid weak demand and lower prices in Chicago and Paris, analysts said. Prices in Chicago, a benchmark for the wheat market, are near their three-month low as improved weather across the Northern Hemisphere boosted expectations of bumper supplies. Russian wheat with 12.5% protein loading from Black Sea ports for supply in April was at $273 a tonne free on board (FOB) at the end of last week, down $7 from the previous week, agriculture consultancy IKAR said. Sovecon, another consultancy, said wheat prices fell by $9 to $274 a tonne, while barley fell by $6 to $248 a tonne.

Ukraine’s grain stocks totalled 15.9 million tonnes as of March 1, two million tonnes less than at the same point in 2020, the APK-Inform consultancy said citing data from the State Statistics Service. Stocks at large and medium-sized agricultural companies included 4.6 million tonnes of wheat.

Ukrainian wheat export prices have lost as much as $7 a tonne over the past week on this year’s harvest outlook and a drop in Russian wheat prices, the APK-Inform agriculture consultancy said

—The government has said that favourable weather could help farmers to increase the grain crop to 75 million tonnes this year, from 65.5 million tonnes in 2020, with exports reaching 53 million tonnes in the 2021/22 season.

—Asking prices for high-quality soft milling wheat fell to $274-$279 a tonne free on board (FOB) from Black Sea ports as of March 20, it said, while feed wheat dropped to $270-$275 FOB Black Sea.

—Ukraine sold about 57 million tonnes of grain to foreign buyers in the 2019/20 season, but the government has said exports could decline to 45.4 million tonnes in 2020/21 because of a smaller harvest.

—APK-Inform said corn export prices added $2 a tonne to $264-$272 FOB while Ukrainian barley cost $4 and was offered at $255 to $261 a tonne FOB Black Sea.

—The consultancy said Ukrainian sunflower oil asking export prices have risen by up to $115 a tonne, reaching $1,700-$1,175 FOB Black Sea for March-April delivery owing to an increase in sunflower seed prices. Sunseeds were offered at $755-$765 FOB, $30 a tonne more than a week earlier.

—Forward prices for rapeseed from Ukraine’s 2021 harvest have begun to decline after rising sharply earlier this month, in line with a global downtrend, analyst APK-Inform said on Friday. Ukrainian-origin rapeseed traded at $505 to $520 a tonne CPT (carriage paid to) Black Sea with delivery in July-August, or $10-$15 a tonne less than a week ago.

Egypt has sufficient strategic wheat reserves to last until the end of June, the cabinet said. The country also has strategic vegetable oil reserves sufficient for 4.8 months.

The United States will supply Sudan with 300,000 tonnes of wheat this year, rising to 420,000 tonnes annually from 2022-2024, the office of Sudanese Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok said. The United States had pledged support in supplying wheat and other commodities to Sudan over a four-year period after removing Sudan from its list of state sponsors of terrorism late last year.

Of the seven commodities sectors driving deforestation, palm oil companies are doing the most to alleviate their environmental impact following years of public pressure, a study by a global environmental disclosure group shows. The CDP study, which will be released on Monday but was given to Reuters in advance, is likely to ramp up pressure on commodity companies to go green given the progress in palm oil, which is widely blamed by environmentalists for much of the destruction of tropical rainforests.

Exports of Malaysian palm oil products for March 1 – 20 rose 5.2 percent to 734,463 tonnes from 698,380 tonnes shipped during February 1 – 20, cargo surveyor Intertek Testing Services said

Exports of Malaysian palm oil products for March 1 – 20 rose 6.8 percent to 745,260 tonnes from 697,794 tonnes shipped during February 1 – 20, independent inspection company AmSpec Agri Malaysia said