Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Board of Trade wheat futures closed above US$5 a bushel on Friday for the first time in a year, buoyed by diminishing outlooks for spring wheat crops in both the U.S. and Canada, analysts said. CBOT soybean futures rose about three per cent and corn futures also followed the firming […] Read more
U.S. grains: Chicago wheat above $5 on U.S., Canadian concerns
Bayer files for Monsanto takeover approval with EU regulators
Frankfurt | Reuters — Bayer has filed a request for approval of its planned US$66 billion takeover of U.S. seeds company Monsanto with European Union regulators, as suitors line up for assets that Bayer will sell to get the approval by year-end. Bayer, which is bracing for the EU Commission to go into an in-depth […] Read more
Confidence seen in oat sector with Richardson deal
CNS Canada –– Richardson International’s decision to buy British-based European Oat Millers is seen as a strong sign of confidence in the oats sector, even if it has little effect on Prairie farmers. “I think it’s very positive. We’re seeing lots of activity in the oats industry,” Art Enns, president of the Prairie Oat Growers […] Read more
U.S. grains: Spring wheat sets three-year top on weather woes
Chicago | Reuters — U.S. spring wheat futures charged to a three-year high on Thursday, fueled by fears that continued dry conditions in the northern U.S. Plains would cut supply of high-protein milling wheat. The surge in spring wheat futures on the Minneapolis Grain Exchange (MGEX) also lifted Chicago Board of Trade wheat to a […] Read more
BASF ready to snatch seed bargains as rivals sell assets
Ludwigshafen, Germany | Reuters — BASF will consider buying seed assets that rivals are putting on the block to win antitrust approval for tie-ups, saying bargain prices could persuade BASF to overcome its traditional reluctance to expand into the seeds industry. Sources familiar with BASF’s thinking have said that competition regulators looking at potential buyers […] Read more
U.S. Plains drought highlights spring wheat supply crunch
Chicago | Reuters — Drought conditions in the northern U.S. Plains that have propelled spring wheat prices to a three-year high worsened in the past week and there are forecasts for more hot and dry weather that could crimp the harvest. As the world struggles with a glut of grain that has filled inventories to […] Read more
Trade looks to potential, not projections, post-StatsCan data
CNS Canada — The commodity trade has turned its focus forward following fresh data from Statistics Canada. “The acreage numbers are important, but this game right now is all about weather,” said Mike Jubinville of ProFarmer Canada, naming spring wheat as one crop the market had been closely watching. While estimates for all wheat seeded […] Read more
U.S. grains: Spring wheat futures top US$7 on weather worries
Chicago | Reuters — U.S. spring wheat futures surged 3.4 percent on Wednesday, topping US$7 a bushel for the first time in nearly three years on worries that stressful weather will curb production of the high-quality milling wheat, analysts said. The jump in Minneapolis Grain Exchange (MGEX) spring wheat lifted Chicago Board of Trade wheat […] Read more
Dow, DuPont to shed Canadian assets for merger approval
Competition for the Prairie farmer’s crop protection dollar will survive following the planned merger of chemical giants Dow and DuPont, by way of a handful of asset sales, Canada’s Competition Bureau has ruled. The federal antitrust watchdog on Tuesday announced it has an agreement with DuPont and Dow Chemical to head off what would otherwise […] Read more
U.S. grains: Spring wheat near three-year high on dry weather
Chicago | Reuters — U.S. spring wheat futures hit their highest level in nearly three years on Tuesday on forecasts for stressful weather in the northern Plains, analysts said. Corn and soybean futures also climbed after a U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) report said the condition of all three U.S. crops was worse than analysts […] Read more
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