Corn (Source: CME)
US corn futures settled at their lowest level in two weeks, driven by slumping demand. Concerns US corn is overpriced in world markets weighed. Reports of Southeast US livestock feeders importing cheaper feed wheat to replace high-priced corn in feed rations attracted sellers, analysts say. Sluggish export demand seen as another signal that it's one of the most over-priced grains in the world market, analysts say. Firm cash prices, strong demand from ethanol producers and firm outside market provided light support to limit declines. CBOT Dec corn finished down 7c or 1.1% at $6.38 1/2/bushel.
Wheat (Source: CME)
U.S. wheat futures ended mixed, as nearby CBOT soft red winter futures slip on news of imports. The imports have prompted ideas that prices are too high and must retreat to generate more demand. Export demand remains poor amid ample world supplies. Worries about U.S. crops, particularly the hard red winter crop in the southern Plains, limiting the downside. CBOT Dec. wheat ends down 3 1/4c to $6.16 1/4 per bushel while MGEX Dec. wheat closes down 11 1/4c to $9.34 1/4. KCBT Dec. hard red winter wheat ends up 7c at $7.04.
Rice (Source: CME)
U.S. rice futures continued to slump, ending lower on weak demand and technical selling. CBOT Nov. rice ends down 3c to $15.00 1/2 per hundredweight, setting another fresh 4-month low. Prices have fallen 11 of the past 12 days and are down from and Oct. 25 high of $17.26.
U.S. wheat futures stage modest recovery
SYDNEY, Nov 11 (Reuters) - U.S. wheat futures posted modest gains as bargain hunters stepped in after a fall of nearly 4 percent the previous session when investors dumped contracts, spooked by weak U.S. grain exports and the fallout from Europe's debt crisis.
"Basically, people are taking advantage of the sell-off," said Jonathan Barratt, head of Sydney-based Commodity Brokering Services.
Russian harvests 96.9 mln tonnes of grain - AgMin
MOSCOW, Nov 10 (Reuters) - Russia has harvested 96.9 million tonnes of grain by bunker weight from 97.3 percent of the harvesting area of 42.9 million hectares, the Agriculture Ministry data showed on Thursday.
The ministry has lowered the targeted harvesting area from a previous 44.1 million hectares, the data showed.
Russia may export up to 17 mln T grain by year-end
MOSCOW, Nov 10 (Reuters) - Russia, which plans to export 24-25 million tonnes of grain in the 2011/12 crop year, may ship up to 17 million tonnes of grain by the end-December half way point, First Deputy Prime Minister Victor Zubkov said on Thursday. Zubkov told reporters that Russia had already exported a hefty 13.3 million tonnes of grain since July 1, after the expiration of a near year-long export ban imposed due to a severe drought in 2010.
Final US harvest bogged down by rain, light snow
CHICAGO, Nov 10 (Reuters) - The remaining harvest of the 2011 U.S. corn and soybean crops has been slowed by wet weather, and more rain is expected in the eastern Midwest next week, an agricultural meteorologist said Thursday.
"It will be drier through Monday, then a low pressure system should bring rain to the east next week, including Ohio where they've already been slowed by rain," said Sean Rocheford, meteorologist for World Weather Inc.
Ukraine exports 5.4 mlnT grain so far in 11/12 -lobby
KIEV, Nov 10 (Reuters) - Ukraine, which plans to export a record 27 million tonnes of grain in the 2011/12 season, exported 5.4 million tonnes from July to Nov. 9, the Ukrainian Agrarian Confederation (UAC) grain lobby said on Thursday.
"As of November 9, grain exports from Ukraine totalled about 5.4 million tonnes, including about 2 million tonnes of wheat, 1.4 million of maize and 1.8 million of barley," UAC director Serhiy Stoyanov said in a statement.
China's Grain Problem Tough To Solve (Source: CME)
China is facing difficulties in solving its "grain question," or its ability to feed itself, and must persist with the policy of maintaining self-sufficiency in grain supply, a vice chairman with China's top economic planning agency said. Du Ying's comments are a signal that despite rising pressures for grain imports--corn, in particular--Beijing doesn't plan to relent on maintaining the world's largest grain reserves. Global grain stocks have fallen to 70 days' worth, Du said, citing the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. A rising population, shrinking land and changing lifestyles will "cause our country's grain [market] balance to remain tight," he said in a webcast of a State Council Information Office briefing. At the briefing, Henan Province Governor Guo Gengmao said the province's grain output this year will likely reach 55 million metric tons, or 10% of national output.
This means China is likely to announce a 550-million-ton harvest this year, a fresh record. While government officials have hinted at the figure, Guo's comment provided further confirmation that the government may announce the figure for the full year in coming months. Henan is China's top grain producer.
Wheat Shippers Battle for Sales as Global Grain Glut Expands: Commodities (Source: Bloomberg)
France may lose its place as the second-biggest wheat exporter after failing to win more than a dozen tenders in Egypt, the world’s biggest buyer, as shipments from Russia, Ukraine and Kazakhstan overwhelm markets. Egypt favored cheaper supply from the Black Sea region in the past 17 tenders and cargoes to northern Africa from France’s Rouen, Europe’s biggest grain-export hub, fell to a four-month low in the week ended Nov. 2, port data show. France’s crop office expects a 23 percent drop in shipments in the 12 months ending in June, the most in at least a decade.
That’s reversing last season’s trend, when French cargoes jumped 16 percent to a record as Russia and Ukraine cut sales to ensure domestic supply. Prices that reached a three-year high in February are plunging after both countries eased restrictions. Output is also expanding elsewhere and the United Nations expects the biggest-ever global harvest. Wheat may drop another 20 percent in Paris by May, said Greg Grow, director of agribusiness at Archer Financial Services Inc. in Chicago.
S Korea, China May Buy Ukrainian Wheat (Source: CME)
Traditional U.S. corn buyers Japan and Taiwan are purchasing the grain from the Ukraine to cut costs, the U.S. Grains Council's senior regional director for the Mediterranean and Africa said. Ukrainian feed wheat, a substitute for corn, could also start heading to South Korea and even China, which traditionally favours corn as a feedmeal, Cary Sifferath said in a report. "With a record corn crop this year and plenty of feed quality wheat to sell, I would now say Ukraine will have 10 million to 12 million tons of corn and 7 million tons of feed wheat available for export," Sifferath said. Ukrainian corn and feed wheat exports appear to be becoming a strong competitor for the U.S., the world's largest corn exporter, he said. The International Grains Council last month raised its forecast for Ukrainian corn exports forecast by 4.7% to 9.0 million tons. The country exported 5.0 million tons of corn in the IGC marketing year ended June 30.
China's wheat imports will likely hit 1.5 million tons in 2011-12, the IGC said, an increase of 50% from its earlier forecast of 1 million tons.
Argentina Shifts Gears In Ethanol Push (Source: CME)
Argentina is pushing full steam ahead with plans to turn a larger chunk of its grain into fuel, tracking the headlong drive toward corn ethanol production in the U.S. and stoking fears that using food for fuel will drive up food prices across the globe. Argentina is already a global leader in making soybean-based biodiesel and currently turns much of its sugar into gasoline, but now it's turning to the corn stalks carpeting the Pampas each season to fill its gas tanks in an effort to meet ambitious blending targets. Argentina is the world's second-leading corn exporter behind the U.S. "It's certainly not good news for global livestock industries, or countries worried about food inflation," said Rich Feltes, senior vice president of research for R.J. O'Brien. But local corn growers say the fears are overblown. Argentina's corn production will swell to meet the new demand for ethanol, said Martin Fraguio, director of the corn growers association Maizar.
In addition, the feed industry will get a boost as the byproducts from ethanol production go into chicken, pig and cattle troughs, he added. According to Fraguio, by 2012 ethanol producers will be using 200,000 to 300,000 metric tons of corn per year, rising to between 500,000 and 600,000 tons in 2013 and almost a million tons by 2014. That's a relatively small share of the country's total corn output. Argentina's farmers are expected to grow a record 29 million tons of corn during the 2011-12 season, with exports at 20 million tons, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. A handful of companies are pouring hundreds of millions of dollars into the corn ethanol business to take advantage of Argentina's stimulus program. The government has made biofuels promotion a priority as a way to add manufacturing value to the country's grains. Producers are guaranteed a profit as the government sets a minimum price for biofuels which refiners are required to blend into the country's petrol.
U.S.-based grain exporter Bunge Ltd. and local grain shipper Aceitera General Deheza have teamed up to invest $201 million in a corn ethanol plant with annual capacity of 140 million liters. That project, dubbed ProMaiz, will more than double the country's ethanol production capacity, which totaled 122 million liters in 2010, according to the government. ProMaiz alone is expected to fill 30% of the country's blending quota. Local firms Vicentin S.A., the Argentine Cooperative Association ACA, and Bio4 SA are also charging ahead with plans to build ethanol plants in Cordoba province, the heart of Argentina's corn country. Argentina is currently putting a 3.5% ethanol blend in the gas, although 5% is mandated. By 2012, that will bump up to 8%, although the country is likely to be late in hitting those targets, said Carlos St. James, Regional Director & Board Member of the Latin American & Caribbean Council on Renewable Energy and founder of the Argentine Renewable Energies Chamber.
So far, Argentina has lagged in turning its corn into fuel, but when the current construction wave is done, 58% of the country's ethanol will come from corn, St. James said. Currently it is all made from sugar cane, but because of the climate Argentina can't grow enough sugar to meet the mandated blending requirement. This year, ethanol production is expected to reach 150 million liters. By 2012, the country should be producing 330 million liters per year of ethanol from corn on top of 243 million liters from cane, according to St. James. For now, Argentina's ethanol boom is geared to the domestic market due to the guaranteed demand and minimum price. However, Argentina has already proved itself one of the world's most efficient biodiesel makers, leading global exports of the fuel and coming in second after the E.U. in terms of production. Argentine biodiesel makers will export $1.5 billion worth of the fuel this year, according to the government.
China Cotton Imports Surge In October (Source: CME)
China's October cotton imports nearly tripled from a year ago, partly due to demand for high-quality Indian and Australian cotton among local buyers, and are expected to rise in the coming months, analysts said. Robust appetite for cotton in the world's top consumer and importer will likely underpin global prices and maintain a healthy balance between supply and demand. Imports hit 252,300 metric tons in October, compared with 96,096 tons a year ago, but dropped 0.2% from September, a report on an industry website run by state stockpiler China National Cotton Reserves Corp. showed. They will continue to rise in the months ahead as the peak season nears, Xinhu Futures analyst Liu Qing said. January shipments totaled 390,720 tons, the highest for the year, customs figures showed. In December 2010, they totaled 461,592 tons, the highest for that year.
In September this year, cotton imports from India more than tripled to 55,400 tons, while shipments from Australia nearly tripled to 99,500 tons, customs figures showed. Last week, China bought a huge quantity of 998,000 running bales--or around 226,000 tons--from the U.S., the U.S. Department of Agriculture said in a report. Traders and analysts said CNCRC made the purchase to replenish reserves. A CNCRC spokesperson couldn't immediately be reached for comments. The state stockpiler had only about 400,000 tons in reserves before it began local cotton purchases Sept. 8, Liu said. As of Thursday, it had purchased 380,180 tons from local farmers at CNY19,800/ton, a state-set price. January-October imports reached 2.2 million tons, down 2.4%, industry body Cncotton said.
ICE cocoa near 2-1/2 year low, sugar steady
LONDON, Nov 11 (Reuters) - ICE cocoa hovered near its lowest levels in more than two years, while sugar and coffee were steady, as investors remained cautious after another week of dramatic turns in the euro zone debt crisis.
Cocoa futures on ICE were steady with the flow of cocoa from West Africa combined with negative macroeconomic sentiment weighing on prices.
China Oct cotton imports surge, likely to rise further
BEIJING, Nov 11 (Reuters) - China's cotton imports in October surged 163 percent from the same period last year to 252,300 tonnes, an industry website reported on Friday, citing customs data.
Cotton imports in the first 10 months of this year totalled 2.20 million tonnes, down 2.4 percent on the year, according to the report published on, a website operated by the China National Cotton Reserves Corp.
Brazil CS sugar output winds down in late Oct
SAO PAULO, Nov 10 (Reuters) - Sugar production in Brazil's center-south in the second half of October dipped 23.5 percent from a year ago, as more mills ended crushing the 2011/12 cane crop, sugar cane industry association Unica said on Thursday.
Sugar output totaled 1.47 million tonnes, down from 1.92 million tonnes a year earlier. Eighty-nine out of the 310 existing mills in the region had concluded crushing by Nov. 1.
Mexico sugar chamber raises production forecast
MEXICO CITY, Nov 10 (Reuters) - Mexico's sugar production will be about 5.3 million tonnes in the 2011/12 season, up from a previous estimate of 5 million tonnes, the head of the national sugar industry chamber said on Thursday.
Exports in the 2011/2012 season, which began in November, will be about the same as last year, the chamber's director, Juan Cortina, told reporters.
ICO cuts '11/12 global coffee output to 127.4 m bags
LONDON, Nov 10 (Reuters) - World 2011/12 global coffee output is expected at 127.4 million 60-kg bags, down from the previous estimate of around 130 million bags, the International Coffee Organization (ICO) said on Thursday.
"Adverse weather conditions, which could have a negative impact on production or post harvest activities, have been recorded in a number of exporting countries, particularly in Central America and Indonesia," the ICO said.
Coal India Quarterly Profit Misses Analyst Estimates Amid Lower Output (Source: Bloomberg)
Coal India Ltd. (COAL), the world’s largest producer of the fuel, posted a second-quarter profit that missed analyst estimates amid a drop in production. Net income in the three months ended Sept. 30 was 25.9 billion rupees ($516 million), or 4.10 rupees a share, Coal India said in a stock exchange filing yesterday. Year-earlier figures weren’t provided because the company wasn’t listed at the time. The median estimate of 18 analysts surveyed by Bloomberg was a profit of 27.2 billion rupees. Sales were 131.5 billion rupees. The state-run company’s production fell in the quarter after heavy monsoon rains halted output of coal, used to fire more than half of the power generation capacity in Asia’s second-fastest growing major economy. Electricity generation in September dropped 3.5 percent from August, while the peak-hour deficit reached 13.9 percent, the highest since April 2010.
Euro Coal-Prices dip $1 despite oil, euro rise
LONDON, Nov 10 (Reuters) - South African prompt physical coal prices fell by just over $1.00 a tonne on Thursday, despite a rebound in oil prices, the euro and equities yet activity was limited.
"Macro news and physical coal are in alignment, prices are moving together but there's no activity in coal in Europe or Asia," one major European trader said.
Brent firms above $114; eyes euro zone debt
LONDON, Nov 11 (Reuters) - Brent crude rose above $114 a barrel, adding to gains in the previous session, on hopes that developments in highly indebted Italy and Greece were part of a move that will help avert a wider crisis in the region.
"Prices are still quite strong, given the environment. The focus is still the debt crisis in the euro zone: the headwinds from there abate somewhat with the new government in Greece and the pending Berlusconi resignation," said Commerzbank analyst Carsten Fritsch.
Bad weather shutters Mexico's three main oil ports
MEXICO CITY, Nov 10 (Reuters) - Mexico's three main oil exporting ports remained closed on Thursday afternoon due to high winds and waves caused by a cold front, the government said.
Waves of 16 to 19 feet (4.9 to 5.8 meters) and winds up to 56 mph (90 kph) closed Coatzacoalcos port, one of Mexico's three main oil-exporting ports.
Oil Rises for a Third Day to Highest Since July on European Debt Outlook (Source: Bloomberg)
Oil rose for a third day in New York amid speculation new governments in Italy and Greece increase Europe’s ability to contain a debt crisis that threatens to derail economic growth and curb fuel demand. Futures advanced as much as 0.7 percent, extending last week’s 5 percent gain. Greece’s finance minister said his priority is to ensure the country receives a sixth loan under a EU-led bailout. Italy’s President Giorgio Napolitano offered Mario Monti, a former European Union competition commissioner, the post of prime minister. Oil markets are in balance and not over-supplied, ministers from OPEC-member nations Algeria, Iran and Nigeria said Nov. 13. Crude for December delivery climbed as much as 70 cents to $99.69 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange and was at $99.02 at 7:44 a.m. Singapore time. The contract gained $1.21 on Nov. 11 to to $98.99, the highest settlement since July 26. Prices have risen for six weeks, the longest run of gains since April 2009.
Iron Ore-Spot extends winning streak to 9th day on tight supply
SINGAPORE, Nov 11 (Reuters) - Spot iron ore prices rose for a ninth straight day and the market remained well bid on Friday, supported by firm demand from Chinese steel mills and limited seaborne shipments.
The supply of spot cargoes from Vale , BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto has dropped significantly as the world's three biggest iron ore producers have sold recent shipments through longer-term deals, traders said.
China's Baosteel cuts main product prices for Dec
SHANGHAI, Nov 11 (Reuters) - China's Baoshan Iron & Steel will cut its main product prices for December bookings, the company said on Friday, a move reflecting the weakness in steel demand in the final month of 2011.
The company, also known as Baosteel, plans to slash hot-rolled coil prices by 200 yuan ($32) per tonne and cold-rolled coil prices by 300 yuan per tonne, after it kept its main steel product prices unchanged in November from October.
China Oct copper imports shine, iron ore suffers
SHANGHAI, Nov 10 (Reuters) - China's October commodities trade data shows the winners and losers from the country's cooling economy -- copper imports rose for the fifth straight month, but a slump in iron ore shipments highlights the risks for raw materials linked to real estate.
The government's resolve to clamp down on the property sector means the steel and cement industries, and associated raw materials such as iron ore and coking coal, will remain mired for at least the next quarter.
Gold Traders Most Bullish Since 2004 on Debt Crisis (Source: Bloomberg)
Gold traders and analysts are the most bullish in at least seven years as investors accumulate metal at the fastest pace since August to protect their wealth from a widening European debt crisis. Twenty-one of 22 surveyed by Bloomberg expect bullion to rise on the Comex in New York next week, the third consecutive increase and the highest proportion in data going back to April 2004. Holdings in exchange-traded products backed by gold rose 27.5 metric tons this week, within 1 percent of the record set almost three months ago, data compiled by Bloomberg show.
Gold exceeded $1,800 an ounce for the first time in seven weeks on Nov. 8, and hedge funds are holding their biggest bet on higher prices since mid-September, Commodity Futures Trading Commission data show. The metal is rebounding after tumbling as much as 20 percent in three weeks in September on demand for what are perceived as the safest assets. Almost $9 trillion was wiped off the value of global equities since May and yields on Italian and Greek bonds rose to euro-era records this week.
Baltic index rises for 2nd day, outlook seen fragile
LONDON, Nov 10 (Reuters) - The Baltic Exchange's main sea freight index, which tracks rates to ship dry commodities, rose for a second day on Thursday helped by firmer sentiment although cargo business was muted.
The overall index rose 38 points or 2.11 percent to 1,840 points. Prior to the move higher, it had fallen for ten consecutive sessions previously and dropped to its lowest in two months earlier this week.
Asia Dry Bulk-Rates to rise on tighter supplies, China demand
SINGAPORE, Nov 10 (Reuters) - Freight rates for capesize dry bulk carriers on key Asian routes are expected to rise slightly on tightening vessel supplies in the Atlantic and strengthening Chinese demand for iron ore, shipbrokers said on Thursday.
Fixture rates for capesize vessels on the Brazil-China route edged up to $25.592 a tonne on Wednesday from $25.154 last week, supported by a rebound in Chinese demand and iron ore spot prices. The freight market hit a two-month low of $24.304 on Monday.
