TODAY
Wheat prices overnight are down 13 in SRW, down 13 in HRW, down 5 in HRS; Corn is down 6 1/2; Soybeans down 9 3/4; Soymeal down $0.16; Soyoil down 0.58.
For the week so far wheat prices are up 29 in SRW, up 28 in HRW, up 24 in HRS; Corn is up 9 1/2; Soybeans up 41; Soymeal up $0.62; Soyoil up 3.07. For the month to date wheat prices are up 158 3/4 in SRW, up 145 1/2 in HRW, up 90 1/4 in HRS; Corn is up 60 1/2; Soybeans up 72 1/4; Soymeal up $37.20; Soyoil up 2.87.
Year-To-Date nearby futures are up 42% in SRW, up 37% in HRW, up 10% in HRS; Corn is up 27%; Soybeans up 29%; Soymeal up 17%; Soyoil up 34%.
Chinese Ag futures (MAY 22) Soybeans down 12 yuan; Soymeal up 48; Soyoil up 210; Palm oil up 426; Corn up 10 — Malaysian palm oil prices overnight were down 249 ringgit (-4.02%) at 5943.
There were no changes in registrations. Registration total: 2,185 SRW Wheat contracts; 1 Oats; 15 Corn; 247 Soybeans; 98 Soyoil; 0 Soymeal; 154 HRW Wheat.
Preliminary changes in futures Open Interest as of March 23 were: SRW Wheat up 177 contracts, HRW Wheat down 335, Corn up 14,380, Soybeans up 5,785, Soymeal up 2,421, Soyoil up 910.
Northern Plains Forecast: Mostly dry Wednesday. Isolated showers Thursday. Mostly dry Friday-Sunday. Temperatures near to above normal through Friday, above normal west and near to below normal east Saturday-Sunday. 6-to-10-day outlook: Isolated showers Monday-Tuesday. Mostly dry Wednesday-Thursday. Isolated showers Friday. Temperatures near to above normal Monday-Tuesday, near to below normal Wednesday-Friday.
Central/Southern Plains Forecast: Mostly dry through Sunday. Temperatures near to below normal through Thursday, near normal Friday-Saturday, above normal west and near to below normal east Sunday. 6 to 10 day outlook: Mostly dry Monday. Isolated showers Tuesday-Friday. Temperatures above normal Monday-Tuesday, near normal Wednesday-Friday.
Western Midwest Forecast: Isolated showers Thursday-Friday. Mostly dry Saturday-Sunday. Temperatures near to above normal Wednesday, near to below normal Thursday, near to above normal Friday, below normal Saturday-Sunday.
Eastern Midwest Forecast: Scattered showers through Friday. Isolated showers Saturday. Mostly dry Sunday. Temperatures above normal Wednesday, near to above normal Thursday-Friday, below normal Saturday-Sunday. 6-to-10-day outlook: Mostly dry Monday. Isolated showers Tuesday-Wednesday. Mostly dry Thursday-Friday. Temperatures above normal west and below normal east Monday, near to below normal Tuesday-Friday.
Brazil Grains & Oilseeds Forecast: Rio Grande do Sul and Parana Forecast: Isolated to scattered showers through Friday. Mostly dry Saturday. Temperatures near normal Tuesday-Wednesday, near to above normal Thursday, near to below normal Friday-Saturday. Mato Grosso, MGDS and southern Goias Forecast: Isolated showers through Saturday. Temperatures near to above normal through Saturday.
Argentina Grains & Oilseeds Forecast: Cordoba, Santa Fe, Northern Buenos Aires… Summary: Isolated showers. Temperatures near normal. Forecast: Mostly dry Tuesday. Scattered showers Wednesday-Thursday. Isolated showers Friday. Mostly dry Saturday. Temperatures near normal Tuesday-Wednesday, below normal Thursday-Saturday. La Pampa, Southern Buenos Aires Forecast: Scattered showers Thursday. Mostly dry Friday-Saturday. Temperatures near normal Tuesday-Wednesday, below normal Thursday-Saturday.
The player sheet for 3/23 had funds: net sellers of 5,000 contracts of SRW wheat, buyers of 3,500 corn, sellers of 10,000 soybeans, buyers of 6,000 soymeal, and buyers of 4,500 soyoil.
TENDERS
- WHEAT SALE: Turkey’s state grain board TMO bought 245,000 tonnes of wheat imports and 210,000 tonnes of wheat delivered from warehouses inside Turkey in tenders that closed on Wednesday
- FAILED BARLEY TENDER: Jordan’s state grain buyer is believed to have canceled an international tender to buy 120,000 tonnes of barley which closed on Wednesday
PENDING TENDERS
- FEED GRAIN TENDER: Iranian state-owned animal feed importer SLAL has issued an international tender to purchase up to 60,000 tonnes of animal feed barley, 60,000 tonnes of feed corn and 60,000 tonnes of soymeal
- SOYOIL TENDER: Iran’s state purchasing agency GTC has issued an international tender to purchase about 30,000 tonnes of soyoil
- WHEAT TENDER: Jordan’s state grain buyer has issued an international tender to buy 120,000 tonnes of milling wheat sourced from optional origins
- WHEAT TENDER: Iraq’s state grains buyer has extended the deadline for the validity of price offers in a tender to buy a nominal 50,000 tonnes of hard milling wheat
- BARLEY TENDER: A buyer in Qatar has issued a tender to buy an estimated 105,000 tonnes of animal feed barley
- CORN TENDERS: Turkey’s state grain board TMO issued two tenders seeking a total 500,000 tonnes of animal feed corn in a combination of imports and supplies already in Turkey
- WHEAT TENDER: Bangladesh’s state grains buyer has issued another international tender to purchase 50,000 tonnes of milling wheat
DOE: U.S. Ethanol Stocks Rise 0.8% to 26.148M Bbl
Argentina Corn Estimate Trimmed 3.9% to 49m Tons, Exchange Says
Yields from early-planted corn are lower than expected after a drought, the Buenos Aires Grain Exchange says in its weekly report.
- Risks to its soybean estimate include rains this week in northern regions and frost in southern Buenos Aires province
- Soy harvest is just getting started; forecast kept at 42m metric tons
Farmers Plant More Acres Amid High Commodity Prices: Corteva
Farmers are starting to bring on extra acres due to rising commodity prices, says Corteva Inc. Chief Technology Officer Sam Eathington.
Shipping Company Executives Look to Avoid Business in Russia
Chief executives of shipping companies Taylor Maritime Investments and Golden Ocean Group said they are looking to avoid doing business moving Russian products.
- “I don’t want to pick up grains from Russia,” Taylor Maritime CEO Edward Buttery said at the FT Gobal Commodities Summit
- While ships are still insured to go to Russia, the company doesn’t want to do anything to support a war that he and his shareholders are against
- No decision has been taken to stop business in Russia, but Buttery believes shareholders would support that move
- Golden Ocean CEO Ulrik Uhrenfeldt Andersen said at the same conference that the company has terminated some business in Russia and is looking to avoid the country altogether
Morocco Soft-Wheat Imports May Jump About 80% Next Season: Group
Morocco’s soft-wheat imports could rise to 5m tons in the coming season, from 2.8m tons in the current year, as a severe drought hampers its local harvest, French group Intercereales said Wednesday in an emailed report.
- NOTE: Intercereales represents grain producers, traders, processors
- Morocco doesn’t usually import Russian wheat, but relies on Ukrainian grain for as much as 30% of its needs
- It may turn to buying more from France, said Yann Lebeau, head of the group’s Casablanca office
- Soaring wheat prices are also a concern for food security in sub-Saharan Africa
- Millers must pay high prices for international supply, but can’t pass on the costs in flour prices because of state regulations
- In Mali, three of the nation’s six major mills have ceased operations
- Tunisia will also need to turn to alternative origins as it often sources 50%-70% of wheat imports from Ukraine
- The nation’s inventories are low
- Countries like Egypt, Algeria and Saudi Arabia are seeking to boost domestic production and diversify supply sources
Fertilizer Price Index at Record as Ukraine War Tightens Supply
As the war in Ukraine enters its fourth week, urea and phosphate keep climbing at New Orleans (NOLA) and in Brazil, Europe and the Middle East. An ammonia sale by Nutrien at $1,650 a metric ton indicates Tampa ammonia could top its record by 40% in April. Potash prices jumped in NOLA and Brazil to almost 2x last month’s Chinese annual contract.
Fertilizer Prices Remain Firm-to-Higher
All major fertilizer prices are steady or up in early week trading, with the bullish trend expected to continue as India soon tenders for more urea and Tampa ammonia is bought for April. On top of good demand, nitrogen, phosphates and potash all have significant supply issues, led by the war in Ukraine, sanctions on Russia and Belarus, high European natural gas prices and a lack of exports from China.
Ukraine 2022 grain crop seen down 54.6% to 38.9 mln T – APK-Inform
Ukraine’s 2022 grain harvest is likely to fall 54.6% to 38.9 million tonnes due to a decrease in sowing area caused by the Russian invasion, APK-Inform agriculture consultancy said on Wednesday.
The 2022/23 July-June grain export could fall 32% to almost 30 million tonnes, including 10 million tonnes of wheat and 19 million tonnes of corn, the consultancy said in a report.
Argentina’s central, eastern farm zones set for abundant rain, risk of storms
Argentina’s central and eastern farming regions are set for a week of abundant rains with the risk of storms, hail and strong winds in the coming days, the Buenos Aires grains exchange said on Wednesday in its weekly weather outlook.
The South American country, the world’s top exporter of processed soy and the second-largest exporter of corn, is set to start its 2021/22 soybean harvest and is at the early stages of the corn harvest after both crops were hit by drought earlier in the year.
Indonesia, Malaysia commit to biodiesel mandates despite higher prices
Top palm oil producers Indonesia and Malaysia remain committed to their mandatory biodiesel programmes despite higher prices of the feedstock to reach green energy goals, senior officials said on Thursday.
Indonesia and Malaysia use palm oil as blending for biodiesel, with Indonesia since early 2020 using a mandatory B30 – a biodiesel containing 30% of palm-based fuel – the highest mandatory mix in the world, to slash imports of diesel fuel.
Indonesia’s palm-based fuel programme “will not stop at B30”, Coordinating Minister for Economic Affair Airlangga Hartarto, told a virtual industry conference.
“Commitment of using palm as biofuel material will boost Indonesia to achieve energy security and a (renewable) energy mix target of 23% by 2025,” Airlangga said.
Renewables currently make up about 11% of Indonesia’s energy mix.
“Despite the high price of palm oil the government is committed to maintain the biodiesel blending ratio and planning to introduce the high blend of biodiesel, like the B30, later,” she said.
Malaysia’s palm oil benchmark has gained about 30% so far this year amid sluggish output from the two top producers, Indonesia’s earlier export restrictions and impacts of the war in Ukraine.
Malaysia plans to implement its nationwide adoption of the B20 (20% palm oil component) palm oil biofuel programme by the end of 2022, its palm oil board said in January.
The mandate to manufacture B20 for the transport sector was introduced in January 2020 but delayed by coronavirus movement curbs.
Indonesia May Boost Biodiesel Exports to 1m Kiloliters in 2022
Indonesia, the world’s largest palm oil producer, is seen exporting 1 million kiloliters of biodiesel this year as demand increases due to rising crude oil price, Vice Chairman of Indonesia Biofuel Producer Association, Paulus Tjakrawan said in an interview in Yogyakarta on Thursday.
- Exports was only about 91,500 kiloliters in 2021
- Association sees this year’s robust demand coming from China and European countries
- Indonesia produced 8.98m KL biodiesel in 2021, consumed 8.44m KL
- B30 biodiesel mandate will use about 17% of 2022 palm oil production
- Biodiesel output at 1.77m KL as of Feb.; domestic use at 1.64m tons; exports at 2,299 KL
Egypt Won’t Hold Another Wheat Tender Before Mid-May: Minister
Egypt will focus on local wheat harvest over the coming weeks before holding another international tender, Supply Minister Aly El-Moselhy tells Bloomberg.
- Authorities won’t hold another tender before the middle of May
- Government targeting buying 5m-6m tons of local wheat this season
Ukraine’s Agriculture Minister Said to Tender Resignation
Ukraine’s agriculture minister, Roman Leshchenko, has tendered his resignation, according to an official familiar with the matter.
His departure was by “mutual agreement” between him and the cabinet, according to the government official, who asked not to be identified as the decision hasn’t been made public. Leshchenko’s deputy Taras Vysotskyi will be acting minister.
Leshchenko didn’t respond to a request to comment, while his spokesperson declined to comment. Several of Ukraine’s media outlets including Ekonomichna Pravda also reported his departure.
Leshchenko was appointed as Agriculture Minister in December 2020. Under his stewardship, Ukraine, one of the world’s top grain producers, reaped a record harvest last year. Leshchenko’s resignation comes as Ukrainian farmers begin sowing spring crops in wartime conditions.
Strikes on Ukraine’s Export Hubs Damage Key Commodity Facilities
- Ukraine gets 40% of its GDP from exports like grain and steel
- Grain, steel infrastructure are among sites hit by Russia
Russian attacks on some of Ukraine’s key export hubs are damaging commodities infrastructure and mean it could be a long road until shipments fully recover.
Ukraine’s ports have been closed since the war began, and now some major grain-export facilities and steel plants have been severely hit by shelling. They include a site belonging to agribusiness giant Bunge Ltd. in Mykolayiv on the Black Sea, as well as the large Azovstal steel plant in Mariupol.
The country gets about 40% of its gross domestic product from exports. That includes roughly $8 billion from wheat and corn and $3.4 billion from iron ore, Observatory of Economic Complexity data show. While it’s seeking to open new routes by rail for selling goods such as crops, volumes could be small. Ukraine’s food companies are focused on securing local supplies, as hundreds of thousands face hunger and are without water and electricity.
“This is a war not only in the military sense, it’s an economic war, because Ukrainian exports are metals, chemicals, machine building, grain,” the country’s agriculture minister, Roman Leshchenko, told the European Parliament Tuesday. “Having destroyed our sea access, they are destroying us economically. We wouldn’t have any income to our budget. We wouldn’t have any means to survive as a state.”
The Mykolayiv port — where Bunge’s facility was hit — has been a shipbuilding center for centuries and typically handles about a fifth of Ukraine’s grains volumes, supplying countries in the Middle East and Europe. Other international and local traders also have facilities in the region along the Black Sea.
Those with goods stored at Ukrainian ports “do not know if we will be able to ship our supplies,” said Saban Buttanri, the owner of Istanbul-based exporter Agrolino Grains and Oilseeds.
He had to evacuate his team just after the war began, leaving behind his office and storing supplies in a third-party warehouse.
In the besieged city of Mariupol, the Metinvest BV-owned Azovstal steel plant had to stop its furnaces amid severe damage from Russian shelling, General Director Enver Tskitishvili said on Facebook last week.
The hit to Ukraine’s export facilities comes on top of damage to food infrastructure, including shells destroying a frozen-chicken warehouse. Soldiers have also commandeered tractors and other farm equipment to build fortifications and tow armored vehicles.
“We understand that our other ports and infrastructure for agriculture exports will be destroyed within another couple of weeks,” Leshchenko said.
Brazil’s BRF gets approval to export pork meat from Mato Grosso plant to Vietnam
Brazilian meatpacker BRF SA BRFS3.SA was authorized by Vietnam to export pork meat from a Mato Grosso plant and now plans to double its shipments to the Asian country, the company said on Wednesday.
The authorization will allow BRF to grow in a strategic geographic market, in line with its plan to increase its relevance in major global consumer centers, BRF’s manager for institutional relations, Luiz Tavares, told Reuters.
Vietnam was the fifth main destination for Brazilian pork in 2021, receiving more than 45,000 tonnes of the product, or 4% of total Brazilian exports, according to data from the government.
“The expectation is that meat consumption in Southeast Asia will grow significantly in the coming years and we are ready to meet this demand,” said the executive.
BRF already exports pork to Vietnam from a plant in Uberlandia, in Minas Gerais State, which received the authorization required last year. The company did not disclose exports volumes.
With the authorization of the Mato Grosso unit, located in Lucas do Rio Verde, the company will sell pork cuts that include shoulder, ribs, chops, loin and ham.
BRF added that it is advancing further in the high-value pork segment, one of the important paths in its Vision 2030 project, in which the company intends to reach annual revenue of more than 100 billion reais in the next decade.
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