Winnipeg, MB, Dec. 2, 2014 ICE

Futures Canada canola contracts were down on Tuesday, retreating from earlier gains as the initial buying interest ran out of steam and sharp declines in the CBOT soy complex spilled over to drag canola down as well.

Oversold price sentiment, a weaker Canadian dollar, and good domestic crusher demand had all helped give canola an early boost, according to participants. The most active January contract had rose by over five dollars per tonne in overnight activity.

However, the independent strength was short-lived, and large losses in soybeans and soyoil eventually spilled over to pull canola down as well. Some sell-stops were hit on the way down, as prices moved below nearby support levels, according to analysts.

Statistics Canada releases updated production estimates on Thursday, December 4, and positioning ahead of the report was likely behind some of the activity. Traders are generally anticipating upward revisions to the canola production number, but the extent of those adjustments remains to be seen.

About 29,399 canola contracts were traded on Tuesday, which compares with Monday when 27,210 contracts changed hands. Spreading accounted for 20,870 of the contracts traded.

Milling wheat and durum were both untraded. Barley was steady to lower, with all of the 50 contracts traded tied to participants exiting the December contract.

Settlement prices are in Canadian dollars per metric ton.

                          Price      Change
Canola            Jan     416.90    dn 5.50
                  Mar     415.30    dn 6.70
                  May     416.90    dn 6.70
Milling Wheat     Mar     251.00    unch
                  May     243.00    unch
Durum             Mar     357.50    unch
                  May     357.50    unch
Barley            Mar     177.00    unch
                  May     177.00    unch
     Spread trade prices are in Canadian dollars and the volume
represents the number of spreads:
Months        Prices                      Volume
Canola
Jan/Mar       0.30 over to 2.20 over        6478
Jan/May       0.70 under to 0.50 over        841
Jan/Jul       1.50 under to 0.70 under        37
Mar/May       1.80 under to 1.30 under      1151
Mar/Jul       2.00 under                       1
May/Jul       1.60 under to 0.40 under      1460
May/Nov       2.10 over to 3.40 over           3
Jul/Nov       2.80 over to 3.40 over         463
Nov/Jan       4.90 under                       1

Commodity News Service