Asia shares edge up, ECB and oil in focus
TOKYO, Feb 28 (Reuters) - Asian shares edged higher and the euro steadied as markets waited for a second liquidity injection from the European Central Bank to gauge risk appetite that has been somewhat dented by worries over high oil prices.
"Markets have risen too rapidly and may consolidate from time to time, (with people) looking to buy after prices fall. But underlying sentiment is gradually firming, as people believe they've seen the worst." said Xiao Minjie, chief economist at FuNNeX Asset Management in Tokyo.
FOREX-Yen off lows as exporters buy in month-end trades
TOKYO, Feb 28 (Reuters) - The yen on Tuesday pulled further away from a 9-month low plumbed the day before, bolstered by aggressive month-end buying by Tokyo exporters, though the currency may remain weak, traders said.
A record trade deficit, shrinking current account surplus and surprise policy easing by the Bank of Japan have combined to trigger what is set to be -- despite an apparent correction kicking in -- the yen's sharpest monthly drop in more than two years.
U.S. grains lower on profit-taking, favourable weather
U.S. grain futures trimmed recent gains on the back of profit taking on a soybean high in earlier trade and more moist weather conditions expected in South America. Spot soybeans hit $12.95 per bushel, the highest price on a continuous chart since Sept. 22, 2011. The March and May contracts broke and settled above their 200-day moving averages.
Singapore's Golden Agri to almost double Indonesian palm oil refining ops
SINGAPORE, Feb 28 (Reuters) - Singaporean palm oil firm Golden Agri Resources plans to nearly double its Indonesian refining capacity to 2.6 million tonnes over the next two years as it exploits the country's lower export taxes for refined edible oils, a top official said.
With currently over half a million hectares of land and 1.4 million tonne refining capacity in Indonesia, Golden Agri is a key beneficiary of Jakarta's move in 2011 to slash export taxes, the firm's Executive Director Rafael B. Concepcion Jr said.
Canada farmers seen planting record-large canola area
WINNIPEG, Manitoba, Feb 27 (Reuters) - Canadian farmers will plant a record-large area to canola this year as they take advantage of attractive prices and dry conditions, the annual Wild Oats Grainworld outlook conference heard on Monday.
Oilseed crusher Louis Dreyfus Canada pegged canola area at 21 million acres (8.5 million hectares), while FarmLink Marketing Solutions forecast plantings of 19.4 million acres, up from 18.65 million acres last year.
Forecasters make deep cuts to Brazil grain outlook
LONDRINA, Brazil, Feb 27 (Reuters) - The outlook for soy production in Brazil darkened further on Monday after public and private forecasters cut their harvest outlooks for the world's No. 2 grower again from predictions provided in recent weeks.
A harsh drought in the south of the country has stressed this year's soy and corn crops, thanks in part to the prevailing La Nina weather conditions that have also parched grain producing areas in Argentina, raising concerns of global food shortages and rising grain prices.
Ivory Coast rains, sun good for cocoa mid-crop
ABIDJAN, Feb 27 (Reuters) - Abundant rain and hot weather last week in most of Ivory Coast's cocoa growing regions improved prospects for the April-September mid-crop, though harvesting is not likely to pick up until May or June, farmers and analysts said on Monday.
The mid-crop in Ivory Coast, the world's top cocoa producer, will be closely watched by markets after an unusually long dry season since mid-November that undermined output during the tail end of the main crop.
China harvest to be hit by labour, fertiliser costs
BEIJING, Feb 27 (Reuters) - Rising labour and fertiliser prices and uncertain weather will reduce China's grain harvest this year, state radio quoted Minister of Agriculture Han Changfu saying on Monday.
A good grain harvest tames China's consumer inflation, which rebounded to 4.5 percent in the year to January, but was still well below a three-year-high of 6.5 percent last July.
Thailand sees steady growth in sugar output of 5 pct per year
BANGKOK, Feb 28 (Reuters) - Thai sugar production is forecast to rise by around 5 percent per year over the next five years and reach 12 million tonnes by around 2017, a senior official at the Office of Cane and Sugar Board (OCSB) said on Tuesday .
"We aim to have steady growth of around 5 percent per year. Let's say we should produce more than 10 million tonnes of sugar annually from now on," the OCSB's secretary-general, Prasert Tapaneeyangkul, told Reuters.
Brent slips below $124 after rally, supply woes support
SINGAPORE, Feb 28 (Reuters) - Brent crude futures extended losses and slipped below $124 , snapping a surge that threatened to hurt the global economy while concerns over supply from the Middle East helped stem the slide.
"People were worried about the quick move in prices - they just sped up too fast," said Tetsu Emori, a fund manager with Astramax Co. in Tokyo.
Japan's heating oil imports set to increase in March -trade
SINGAPORE, Feb 28 (Reuters) - Japan's imports of jet fuel or kerosene are set to increase by at least a third in March from February, boosted by a harsher than usual winter and stocks falling to a 10-month low, industry sources said.
The additional imports should provide some support for the weak Asian jet fuel market, where prices have been lower than the same period last year, amid an abundant supply because of the weaker economic climate and a mild winter in Europe.
China iron demand, miners' resolve in focus at summit
BEIJING/SINGAPORE, Feb 27 (Reuters) - The outlook for China's iron ore demand and pricing of the raw material as well as the race among foreign miners to feed the country's growing appetite for ore are likely to take centrestage at an annual conference in Beijing.
The Big 3 iron ore suppliers -- Vale , Rio Tinto and BHP Billiton -- are boosting output over the next three years, trusting demand from top market China will continue to grow.
Copper dips on China woes, US data caps losses
SINGAPORE, Feb 28 (Reuters) - London copper edged lower as slow demand from top consumer China spurred caution among investors, although more signs of a mending U.S. economy are helping to limit losses.
"I believe Chinese demand is recovering but at a very, very slow pace," said Judy Zhu, commodity analyst at Standard Chartered in Shanghai, citing a drop, though modest, in Shanghai copper stockpiles last week.
Gold hovers below $1,770; ECB funding to support
SINGAPORE, Feb 28 (Reuters) - Gold traded steady , trapped in a tight $4 range below $1,770, as a major cash injection action by the European Central Bank expected later this week supported sentiment.
"As long as central banks around the world lean towards further easing, gold will rise further, although $1,800 will be a key resistance level for the time being," said Li Ning, an analyst at Shanghai CIFCO Futures.
METALS-Copper dips on China woes, US data caps losses
SINGAPORE, Feb 28 (Reuters) - London copper edged lower on Tuesday as slow demand from top consumer China spurred caution among investors, although more signs of a mending U.S. economy are helping to limit losses.
Copper has gained nearly 12 percent this year, but has been struggling to trade higher, given slack Chinese demand since after the Lunar New Year break in January.
PRECIOUS-Gold hovers below $1,770; ECB funding to support
SINGAPORE, Feb 28 (Reuters) - Gold traded steady on Tuesday, trapped in a tight $4 range below $1,770, as a major cash injection action by the European Central Bank expected later this week supported sentiment.
Gold posted losses in the previous two sessions as the momentum fizzled after bullion hit a more than three-month high last week, during which a Greece bailout deal and expectations of more monetary easing from key economies inspired gold bugs.
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