India to cut position limits in some agri commodity futures
MUMBAI, April 2 (Reuters) - India's commodity market regulator plans to cut the number of contracts any member can hold in agricultural commodities in line with production estimates to curb excessive speculation, its head said on Monday, a week after banning guar futures trading.
"We have reports that production of some agricultural commodities have gone down or may go down this year. We are going to rationalise position limits (the number of contracts individual members can hold) accordingly," Ramesh Abhishek, chairman of the Forward Markets Commission (FMC), told Reuters.
Young US farmers coax crops from conservation lands
April 2 (Reuters) - North Dakota farmer Justin Zahradka will plant wheat this spring on 40 acres that has been off-limits for two decades, protected by a government conservation program that is shrinking as high crop prices make farmland more valuable.
The 18-year-old high school senior leased the land a year ago from a neighbor who opted not to re-enroll it in the federal Conservation Reserve Program, a scheme that pays farmers and landowners nearly $2 billion annually to leave land idle in order to protect wildlife and the environment.
Corn - Futures closed narrowly mixed following a choppy day of trade. May, July and December futures ended slightly higher, while most other contracts were slightly lower. Bull spreading was a featured activity in the corn market again today as old-crop futures continue to be supported by tight stocks. Funds bought an estimated 12,000 contracts (60 million bu.) of corn today. In the last three sessions, funds have bought 67,000 contracts (335 million bu.) of corn. (Source: CME)
Corn Market Recap for 4/3/2012 (Source: CME)
Tue 03 Apr 2012 14:15:02 CT
May Corn finished up 3 1/4 at 658 1/4, 7 3/4 off the high and 6 1/4 up from the low. July Corn closed up 2 at 653. This was 5 1/4 up from the low and 6 3/4 off the high. The release of the Fed Reserves minutes from the policy meeting in March sparked aggressive long liquidation selling late in the session to give back a most of the early gains. Funds were noted buyers on the day but sellers late as the US dollar surged and gold and equity markets were hit hard. Talk of tight holding from producers and limited supply going into the late spring helped to support the market in spite of a weaker tone today for outside market forces. The tight cash situation with stronger basis levels noted helped to support nearby corn relative to other grain markets and supported a strong rally in May corn and bull spreads worked well. The Argentina Rosario grains exchange pegged the 2011/12 corn crop at 19.7 million tonnes, down slightly from their previous estimate and down from the March USDA estimate of 22 million tonnes. May Rice finished up 0.045 at 14.93, 0.07 off the high and 0.005 up from the low.
US corn seeding 3 pct done after warm March-USDA (Source: CME)
By Thomson Reuters - Tue 03 Apr 2012 09:50:23 CT
U.S. farmers had planted 3 percent of this year's corn crop by April 1, matching the fastest pace on record, as they took advantage of warm weather throughout March to start running their planters early, according to U.S. Agriculture Department data issued on Monday. The report came in below analysts' expectations of 5 percent but provided evidence that farmers do not intend to shift acres to soybeans even though soy prices rallied 5.4 percent in March as the market attempted to buy acres from corn.
Wheat - Chicago and Minneapolis wheat futures ended narrowly mixed, while Kansas City wheat was steady to slightly higher. Futures ended in the upper end of today's range at all three exchanges. Wheat futures were pressured throughout much of the session by the improvement in winter wheat crop conditions ratings from last fall. (Source: CME)
Wheat Market Recap Report (Source: CME)
Tue 03 Apr 2012 14:15:01 CT
May Wheat finished up 1 at 658, 1 off the high and 8 1/2 up from the low. July Wheat closed down 1/2 at 669. This was 10 up from the low and 1 off the high. May wheat managed to close slightly higher on the session after spending much of the day in negative territory. Key financial and metal markets reacted to the Fed Reserve minutes release and funds turned sellers in the other grains but wheat saw aggressive short-covering late in the day. Rain in the plains overnight and ideas that the crop may continue to improve helped to spark the early selling pressures. However, buying emerged near yesterday's lows to provide some support and the market managed to trade back up to just slightly lower on the day. Traders see some rain in the forecast for Europe and the fast start to the spring wheat plantings as negative forces as well. The first weekly Winter Wheat Conditions report of the year showed that 58% of the crop is rated good/excellent compared to 37% last year. The 10 year average for this time of year is 48%. The highest percent rated good/excellent was 71% in 2007. The spring crop is already 8% planted as compared to 1% last year. The 10 year average for this time of year is 2%. The previous high was 3% in 2007. Outside market forces added to the negative tone early in the session. Ethiopia bought 35,000 tonnes of wheat from Russia. May Oats closed up 1 1/4 at 336. This was 4 up from the low and 3 off the high.
US wheat falls for 2nd day, soy near 7-month top (Source: CME)
By Thomson Reuters - Tue 03 Apr 2012 09:49:07 CT
Chicago wheat slid 0.7 percent, falling for a second straight day as the improved condition of the U.S. winter crop boosted supply prospects, adding to the growing global stockpile. "There is a little bit of weakness in wheat as crop conditions have emerged substantially better than when they went into dormancy last year," said Victor Thianpiriya, an agricultural commodity strategist at ANZ.
GRAINS-US wheat falls for 2nd day, soy near 7-month top
SINGAPORE, April 3 (Reuters) - Chicago wheat slid 0.7 percent, falling for a second straight day as the improved condition of the U.S. winter crop boosted supply prospects, adding to the growing global stockpile.
"There is a little bit of weakness in wheat as crop conditions have emerged substantially better than when they went into dormancy last year," said Victor Thianpiriya, an agricultural commodity strategist at ANZ.
US farmers to plant largest corn area in 75 years
April 2 (Reuters) - U.S. farmers in 2012 are expected to plant the largest area with corn since 1937, with mild weather enabling sowings to get off to a quick start this spring. The U.S. Department of Agriculture said 3 percent of the U.S. corn crop was seeded as of Sunday.
Corn's higher profitability versus soybeans and rising cash rents for land also should promote corn seeding. Land that could not be planted last year due to flooding is expected to be seeded with corn, along with acres coming out of a conservation program.
US corn seeding 3 pct done after warm March-USDA
CHICAGO, April 2 (Reuters) - U.S. farmers had planted 3 percent of this year's corn crop by April 1, matching the fastest pace on record, as they took advantage of warm weather throughout March to start running their planters early, according to U.S. Agriculture Department data issued on Monday.
The report came in below analysts' expectations of 5 percent but provided evidence that farmers do not intend to shift acres to soybeans even though soy prices rallied 5.4 percent in March as the market attempted to buy acres from corn.
Kazakh grain exports 7.8 mln T since July 1
ASTANA, April 2 (Reuters) - Kazakhstan, a major wheat exporter, has so far exported 7.8 million tonnes of grain and flour in grain equivalent during the current marketing year, an Agriculture Ministry official said on Monday.
"If counted together with flour, a total of 7.8 million tonnes of grain has been exported to date in the current marketing year," Anna Buts, director of the ministry's land development and phytosanitary department, told reporters.
Indonesia's March Sumatra coffee bean exports slump
BANDAR LAMPUNG, Indonesia, April 3 (Reuters) - Robusta coffee bean exports from Indonesia's main growing area in Sumatra slumped 83 percent in March from a year earlier, government trade data showed on Tuesday, as weak prices and falling output prompted producers to hold on to sparse stocks.
Indonesia, the world's third-largest coffee producer after Brazil and Vietnam, shipped 5,069.67 tonnes of robusta in March, down from 29,392 tonnes in March last year, with farmers having sold stocks to bank high coffee prices in 2011.
Indian ministers' meet to discuss cotton exports postponed
MUMBAI, April 3 (Reuters) - A meeting of a panel of Indian ministers to discuss the issue of cotton exports has been postponed, government and trade sources said on Tuesday without elaborating.
Trade Secretary Rahul Khullar said last month India, the world's second-largest producer and exporter of the fibre, would discuss the export situation this week, having lifted a ban on shipments imposed on March 5, but having stopped registering new export orders. and
India's Oct-March sugar output up 13 pct-industry body
NEW DELHI, April 3 (Reuters) - India produced 23.2 million tonnes of sugar between Oct 1 and March. 31, up 13 percent from the year ago period, the Indian Sugar Mills Association, a producers' body, said on Tuesday.
It said output in the western state of Maharashtra was at 8.1 million tonnes, up 11.1 percent on a year ago while that from Uttar Pradesh state was at 6.6 million tonnes, up 12.7 percent.
Vietnam Coffee-Exports may drop in 2012
HANOI, April 3 (Reuters) - Coffee exports from Vietnam, the world's second-largest coffee producer after Brazil, are expected to fall 7.2 percent this year because of lower supplies, the Agriculture Ministry said on Tuesday.
Vietnam's coffee shipments are forecast to drop to 1.15 million tonnes, or 19.17 million bags, from 1.25 million tonnes last year, but will still be higher than an earlier ministry forecast of 984,400 tonnes.
Honduran coffee exports jump 50 percent in March
TEGUCIGALPA, April 2 (Reuters) - Coffee exports from Honduras, Central America's top coffee producer, rose 50.3 percent in March from the same month a year earlier, the national coffee association Ihcafe said on Monday.
Honduras, which recently surpassed Guatemala as the region's biggest producer, has so far exported 2.58 million 60-kg bags of coffee in the 2011/12 harvesting season, a 24.2 percent jump from the previous cycle.
Ghana cocoa purchases up 3.5 pct so far - sources
ACCRA, April 2 (Reuters) - Cocoa purchases declared to Ghana's sector body Cocobod reached 717,171 tonnes by March 22 since the start of the 2011/2012 season last October, Cocobod sources said on Monday amid fears of a production shortfall.
The figures, which covered the first 23 weeks of the main crop, were up 3.5 percent the same period last year.
Analyst cuts Brazil cane, sugar forecasts
BRASILIA, March 31 (Reuters) - Brazilian sugar cane and ethanol analyst Archer Consulting cut its forecast for the country's 2012-13 sugar cane crop in the key center-south region on Saturday, lowering expected cane output to 512 million tonnes down from 521 million previously.
In an emailed market report, the consultancy trimmed its view for sugar output to 32.47 million tonnes down from the 32.56 million tonnes it had forecast in early March.
Cotton - Futures finished 21 to 87 points lower in the May through March 2013 contracts, which was anywhere from mid- to low-range for the day. Cotton futures were choppy today amid a lack of fresh news, bu late strengthening of the U.S. dollar index tipped the scales in bears' favor and produced the mildly lower close. (Source: CME)
Arabica Premium Seen Higher on Robusta Supply Surge: Commodities (Source: Bloomberg)
The premium paid for arabica beans favored by Starbucks Corp. (SBUX) over the robusta used by Nestle SA (NESN) may rally from a 20-month low because of a surge in supply from Vietnam, the biggest grower of the less costly coffee. Arabica fell 18 percent in New York this year on prospects for a record Brazilian crop as robusta rose 13 percent in London because of fewer cargoes from Vietnam. The premium dropped to 83.89 cents a pound on March 29, the lowest since July 2010. It will widen to $1.162 by the end of the year, the average of 18 analyst estimates compiled by Bloomberg shows.
Farmers in Vietnam have been stockpiling robusta as a hedge against consumer prices that surged 23 percent in August, according to Macquarie Group Ltd. With inflation moderating to 14 percent in March and harvests about to start in Indonesia and Brazil, they may now accelerate sales, the bank predicts. Arabica is poised to rally 10 percent in the next three months, as drought in Brazil threatens the crop and demand from emerging markets strengthens, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. estimates. “People have focused on the shortage of robusta supplies, and that will change as the crops in Indonesia and Brazil come in and put pressure on the Vietnamese farmers to release their record crop,” said Keith Flury, an analyst at Rabobank in London. “The market is also seriously underestimating how tight the arabica supply-and-demand balance will be.”
Latest US monthly data no help for gasoline bulls
--Robert Campbell is a Reuters market analyst. The views expressed are his own--
NEW YORK, April 2 (Reuters) - Bullish bets on RBOB gasoline futures hinge on supply tightening much faster than demand decreased but the latest U.S. monthly consumption data offer little support to that scenario.
The latest, more definitive, monthly U.S. oil data show no upside surprises in January.
Brent holds above $125 on U.S. data, North Sea supply delay
SINGAPORE, April 3(Reuters) - Brent crude was steady above $125 a barrel after sharp gains in the previous session, supported by fresh signs of a sustained recovery in top oil consumer the United States and the prospect of tighter crude supplies from the North Sea.
"The mood has changed a bit with the good PMI numbers from China and the U.S., although the risks in the euro zone remain," said Victor Say, an analyst with Informa Global Markets in Singapore.
Foreign investment in US energy will increase supplies-IHS
NEW YORK, April 2 (Reuters) - Foreign investment into new U.S. energy resources such as shale gas will accelerate from last year's record $75 billion, speeding a domestic boom in oil and gas production, IHS Herold, a unit of global consultancy IHS said on Monday.
Cash-rich energy firms with interests in the Asia-Pacific region are looking to buy U.S. explorers in need of capital in hopes of exploiting a growing arbitrage between global liquefied natural gas markets and U.S. prices, the latter of which have tumbled to a 10-year low, according to IHS Herold's 2012 Global Upstream M&A Review.
Oil Trades Near Two-Day Low on Rising Stockpiles, Factory Orders (Source: Bloomberg)
Oil traded near a two-day low in New York as gains in stockpiles and a report that factory orders climbed less than expected in the U.S., the world’s biggest crude consumer, indicated demand may be easing. Futures were little changed after dropping for the first time in three days yesterday. Crude supplies climbed 7.8 million barrels last week, the most since Dec. 23, data from the American Petroleum Institute showed. A government report today may indicate inventories rose 2.5 million barrels, according to a Bloomberg News survey. Factory bookings increased 1.3 percent in February compared with a forecast for a 1.5 percent advance. Oil for May delivery was at $104.05 a barrel, up 4 cents, in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange at 9:34 a.m. Sydney time. The contract yesterday declined $1.22, or 1.2 percent, to $104.01, the lowest close since March 30. Prices are 5.3 percent higher this year.
Brent oil for May settlement fell 57 cents, or 0.5 percent, to $124.86 a barrel on the London-based ICE Futures Europe exchange yesterday. The European benchmark contract’s premium to New York-traded West Texas Intermediate closed at $20.85, the most since Oct. 21.
Gold Slumps Most in Four Weeks After Fed Sees No Need for Easing (Source: Bloomberg)
Gold slumped the most in more than four weeks after minutes from the Federal Reserve’s latest policy meeting showed bankers may refrain from announcing further monetary stimulus unless economic growth slows. The central bank is holding off on increasing monetary accommodation unless the U.S. economic expansion falters or prices rise at a slower rate than its 2 percent target, according to minutes of the March 13 meeting released today. Gold has surged almost 90 percent since the end of 2008 as the Fed held borrowing costs at a record low and bought $2.3 trillion in housing and government debt. “The Fed clearly expressed reduced interest on asset purchases,” said William O’ Neill, an Upper Saddle River, New Jersey-based partner at Logic Advisors, a commodity consultant. “We saw a knee-jerk reaction in the market after the potential for any kind of monetary-easing lessened.”
Gold for immediate delivery slumped 2 percent to $1,643.93 an ounce at 3:24 p.m. in New York. A close at that level would be the biggest loss since Feb. 29.
No comments:
Post a Comment