China Ministry: Key Food Prices Fell Last Week For 2nd Week (Source: CME)
Meat and vegetable prices mostly fell in the week to Sunday, the Ministry of Commerce said. The country's food price movements are an indicator of inflationary pressures, as food accounts for about a third of China's consumer price index. Vegetable prices fell 4.8% compared with the preceding week, posting a second straight week of declines after 10 consecutive weeks of increases, the ministry said in a statement. Prices of pork, a bellwether inflation indicator, fell 1.9% in the period, also a second straight week lower, after three weeks of increases. Mutton prices fell 0.2%, while beef rose 0.4%. Chicken prices were unchanged, while edible oil prices were stable to slightly higher, it said.
Corn (Source: CME)
US corn futures end lower, pressured by investors taking profits amid the absence of fresh supportive news, along with a firmer US dollar and outlooks for 2012 US corn acreage to climb to post-World War II highs. That is seen resulting in inventories nearly doubling next year. CBOT March corn ended down 6c at $6.33 1/2 a bushel.
Wheat (Source: CME)
US wheat futures settled lower, backpedaling as traders took profits off the table. Strength in the US dollar spread general weakness in grain futures, with record Australian wheat crop estimates applying fundamental pressure and additional selling, analysts say. The large Australian crops add to already stout world supplies, with USDA last week estimating end-of-year world inventories will reach record levels, analysts say. CBOT March wheat ended down 6 1/4c at $6.35/bushel; March KCBT wheat ended down 7 3/4c to $6.75 1/2; March MGEX wheat dropped 3 1/2c to $8.12.
Rice (Source: CME)
US rice futures rallied on new speculative buying tied to optimism a Chinese delegation could look to purchase US rice on a visit this week. Meanwhile, dry weather in Texas is a big issue for the coming year as water might not be available for irrigation there, said Jack Scoville with Price Futures Group. Added support was fueled from futures prices for next year remaining low in the US, enticing many farmers to consider planting other crops such as corn or soybeans due to lower costs and higher returns, Scoville added. CBOT March rice ended up 25c to $14.38 1/2/hundredweight.
Wheat Shipments From Australia Seen at Record as Harvest Gains on Weather (Source: Bloomberg)
Wheat exports from Australia, set to be the world’s second-biggest shipper, may advance to a record this year as the harvest climbs to an all-time high after favorable weather, according to the government forecaster. Shipments (AUITWHET) may total 22.3 million metric tons in the year to Sept. 30, the Australian Bureau of Agricultural Resource Economics and Sciences said today. That’s 3.2 percent more than forecast on Dec. 6 and 20 percent higher than a year earlier. Production may total 29.5 million tons, 4.3 percent more than previously estimated and beating last year’s record crop of 27.9 million tons, the bureau said in a report. Increased shipments from Australia will add to record worldwide supply and may help to extend the grain’s 29 percent slump in the past year, easing global food costs. Wheat may underperform corn and soybeans, Morgan Stanley said in a report yesterday, citing “flush supplies” from Australia and Europe.
Wheat dips on Australia's output forecast, soy steady
SINGAPORE, Feb 14 (Reuters) - U.S. wheat slid around half a percent , falling for a fifth time in six sessions, as forecasts of crop-friendly weather in the U.S. Plains and Australia's estimate of a record large harvest weighed on the market.
"It is a massive output. Australia will be competing in the world market through the end of the year even when the other origins come in," said Adam Davis, a senior commodity analyst at Merricks Capital in Melbourne, referring to Australia's wheat production forecast.
Australia lifts winter wheat crop f'cst to record 29.5 mln T
SYDNEY, Feb 14 (Reuters) - Australia on Tuesday lifted its forecast for wheat production this year by 4.2 percent to a record 29.5 million tonnes from 28.3 million previously, saying key growing regions completed harvesting before the onset of heavy rains.
U.S. wheat recoiled around half a percent on Tuesday with forecasts of crop-friendly weather in the U.S. Plains and Australia's revision weighing on the market.
US farm income to drop 11.5 pct in 2012-USDA
WASHINGTON, Feb 13 (Reuters) - Farm income will drop sharply from 2011's record high as production costs rise by more than $10 billion for the second year in a row, the U.S. Agriculture Department said on Monday in its first income forecast for this year.
USDA estimated net cash farm income, a measure of solvency, at $96.3 billion, down 11.5 percent from 2011, when it topped $100 billion for the first time. USDA said it was the smallest decline since 2000 for the volatile income figure and that net cash farm income would be far above the 10-year average.
China to quadruple corn imports from the US
WASHINGTON, Feb 13 (Reuters) - China, the world's largest importer of cotton and soybeans, will quadruple its purchases of corn in the coming decade to fatten more livestock, the U.S. Agriculture Department projected on Monday.
In a 10-year outlook, USDA said Chinese soybean imports would rise by 59 percent, to 90 million tonnes, by 2021. A quarter of the U.S. soybean crop goes to China, the No 1 customer for U.S. farm exports.
USDA sees US corn stocks double next year
Feb 13 (Reuters) - A U.S. government report on Monday showed farmers in the United States will plant the largest area with corn this spring since World War Two, which could double the razer-thin stocks of this year and help defray costs to consumers and food companies.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture's baseline projections -- the first of a series of estimates that will help shape prices across the globe -- pegged corn acres at 94 million, the most since 1944 and near trade expectations for 94.2 million.
USDA projects US 2012 wheat sowings 56.5 mln acres
WASHINGTON, Feb 13 (Reuters) - U.S. wheat growers will plant 56.5 million acres of wheat this year and reap a crop of 2.12 billion bushels, the U.S. Agriculture Department projected on Monday.
The projections were based on conditions in late 2011 and will be updated at USDA's annual Outlook Forum Feb 23-24.
India Leapfrogs Competitors To Gain No. 1 Rice Exporter Status -Executives (Source: CME)
India has surpassed Thailand and Vietnam to become the world's top rice exporter since resuming shipments of non-Basmati grades of the grain after a ban lasting more than three years, trading executives, shipping agents and cargo surveyors said. Though the figures are preliminary, it is clear that India's rice exports are sharply rising at the expense of Thailand and Vietnam because it is cheaper and more readily available, marking a significant shift in global trading and helping to keep inflation in check in importing nations. India exported at least 2.7 million metric tons of rice from October through January, the market participants said. Thailand and Vietnam exported 2.0 million and 1.5 million tons, respectively, during the four-month period, according to industry estimates.
For each of the last four months, India consistently exported between 650,000 and 700,000 tons, industry officials said, though some put it even higher, pointing to monthly container shipments, which are harder to track, of between 80,000 tons and 300,000 tons. Thailand exported less than 400,000 tons of rice in January, comprising mostly fragrant Jasmine rice, said Chookiat Ophaswongse, managing director of major Thai exporter Huay Chuan Rice Co. Thailand had been exporting more than a million tons of rice a month in the first half of 2011. "India has virtually captured the parboiled rice market from Thailand due to its lower prices," Thai Rice Exporters Association President Korbsook Iamsuri said recently, adding that Thailand's monthly shipments have fallen by more than 75%, to less than 100,000 tons. Vietnam's rice exports fell to below 300,000 tons in January compared with a monthly average of almost 600,000 tons in 2011.
"We are aware of the Indian competition and have scaled down prices, but demand is still slow and Vietnam doesn't produce parboiled grades," said a trader in Ho Chi Minh City. Vietnam has reduced its rice prices by around $150 a ton in recent months to attract buyers. Vietnam is now offering its 5%- and 25%-broken grades of white rice around $445/ton and $410/ton, respectively, on a free-on-board basis, but Indian offers are still $5-$10/ton cheaper. Thai offers are well above $500/ton, and the government has purchased more than 5.0 million tons of unmilled rice at artificially high prices since early October, to fulfill a pre-election promise to farmers. India can easily export around 600,000 tons of rice a month because of its competitive rates, though shipments may slow down due to rains in the third quarter, Sri Lal Mahal Ltd. Managing Director Prem Garg said. During the ban on non-Basmati grades, India exported around 200,000 tons a month of the premium, long-grained variety.
The country last ranked as the world's top rice exporter in August 2007, when it shipped 648,662 tons, according to figures from the International Grains Council.
Thai 2011 sugar exports hit record 6.68 mln tonnes
BANGKOK, Feb 14 (Reuters) - Thailand, the world's second-biggest sugar exporter, shipped a record 6.68 million tonnes of the sweetener in 2011, up 51 percent from the previous year, due to a bumper crop and strong demand, a senior official said on Tuesday.
"Luckily, we had plenty of sugar last year and I expect that our exports could hit a record again in 2012 because demand remains strong," Prasert Tapaneeyangkul, secretary-general of the Office of Cane and Sugar Board (OCSB), told Reuters.
Indonesia plans 240,000 T raw sugar imports in 2012
JAKARTA, Feb 14 (Reuters) - Indonesia plans to import 240,000 tonnes of raw sugar this year to make up for a white sugar shortage before the domestic milling season in May, the agriculture minister said on Tuesday.
"We need additional white sugar supply in 2012 for one month worth of consumption," said Suswono. "We will not import white sugar, but raw sugar as we still have idle capacity locally at sugar mills."
Vietnam Feb coffee loading to rise as prices jump-trade
HANOI, Feb 14 (Reuters) - Vietnam's coffee export loading in February is expected to rise to between 120,000-150,000 tonnes, or 2 million to 2.5 million 60-kg bags, as exporters cash in on price gains, traders said on Tuesday.
Vietnamese farmers slowed sales even during their harvest peak late last year, and thinning supply from the world's second-largest producer after Brazil has contributed to higher London robusta futures prices.
India cuts coffee output forecast by 0.7 pct
Feb 14 (Reuters) - State-run Coffee Board has cut India's coffee output forecast to 320,000 tonnes for the crop year to September, down 0.7 percent from an earlier projection, which could further dent exports.
The board said output from the southern states of Karnataka and Kerala, which together contribute about 90 percent of the country's coffee production, would likely be lower than expected.
Ivorian cocoa arrivals down 4 pct - exporters
ABIDJAN, Feb 13 (Reuters) - Cocoa arrivals at ports in top grower Ivory Coast as of Feb 12 were down nearly four percent at around 917,000 tonnes versus 955,030 tonnes for the same period a year earlier, exporters estimates showed on Monday.
Exporters said that around 20,000 tonnes of beans were delivered to the West African state's two ports between Feb 6 and Feb 12, down from 50,349 tonnes in the same week a year ago.
Early rains brings relief to Cameroon cocoa farmers
YAOUNDE, Feb 13 (Reuters) - Farmers in Cameroon's main cocoa growing regions said on Monday that abundant rains in the past week have raised hopes of a better mid-crop harvest after a long dry spell coupled with pests attacks that threatened crop output.
Farmers in the Centre and South West regions of the world's fifth largest producer said the rains have enabled flowers to grow on trees and blossom, signalling a potential bumper crop.
Brent slips on Europe woes; above $117 as Iran supports
SINGAPORE, Feb 14 (Reuters) - Brent crude futures slipped, weighed down by demand growth concerns in Europe after ratings agency Moody's downgraded six countries in the region, but prices held above $117 per barrel on fears of a supply disruption.
"At a time when the oil market has had rallies for several weeks, it's probably a little bit of short-term nervousness of being caught on the wrong side," said Ric Spooner, chief markets analyst at CMC Markets, referring to a sell-off by traders
after the Moody's downgrade.
US oil demand to be sluggish for years: Lee Raymond
OSLO, Feb 10 (Reuters) - The United States may be living through 10 years of sluggish growth that does little to boost domestic oil demand in the short term, the former head of oil supermajor ExxonMobil told Reuters.
Lee Raymond, 73, is renowned in the industry as the chief executive and chairman of Exxon from 1993 to 2005, including after its merger with Mobil in 1999 to form the world's largest listed oil company. The South Dakota native is today a director of bank JPMorgan Chase , among other positions.
Oil Trades Near Two-Day Low on Gain in U.S. Stockpiles, Greek Aid Delay (Source: Bloomberg)
Oil traded near a two-day low in New York as investors speculated that fuel demand may falter amid rising U.S. crude stockpiles and delays in approving a bailout package for Greece. Futures were little changed after falling 0.2 percent yesterday. U.S. inventories climbed 2.9 million barrels last week, the industry-funded American Petroleum Institute said after the settlement. An Energy Department report today is forecast to show a gain of 1.5 million barrels, according to a Bloomberg News survey of analysts. European Finance ministers canceled a meeting to agree on a second aid package for Greece, citing a lack of political assurances on an austerity pledge. Oil for March delivery was at $100.90 a barrel, up 16 cents, in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange at 10:54 a.m. Sydney time. It slid 17 cents to $100.74 yesterday, the lowest close since Feb. 10. Prices are 20 percent higher the past year.
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