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CBOT weekly outlook: Weather fuels rallies in grain prices

Rains expected in U.S. Plains states

MarketsFarm — Weather and less-than-stellar crop conditions were the primary factors that caused week-long rallies on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) for the week ended Wednesday. Ongoing dryness in most areas of the U.S. saw crops begin to deteriorate. The corn crop dropped six points to 55 per cent good to excellent as of […] Read more

File photo of stormy conditions over Alberta fields. (Larry Stickney/iStock/Getty Images)

Prairie Forecast Update: Alberta low to break in two

Forecast issued June 18, covering June 19-21

So far, the general forecast seems to be on track, but there have been some changes. The area of low pressure expected to develop and move north through Alberta is still on track but the weather models now it show it winding itself up across central and northern Alberta on Monday before it breaks apart […] Read more


File photo of storm clouds over northeastern Alberta. (ImagineGolf/E+/Getty Images)

Prairie Forecast: Alberta low looks to dominate

Forecast issued June 14, covering June 14-21

So far, the weather models have been doing a good job with the medium-range forecasts, only falling off late in the forecast period. Of course, in the summer, short-range forecasts can be difficult, especially when it comes to just when and where thunderstorms will develop. I always find it interesting that a forecast could be […] Read more

ICE July 2023 canola with 20- and 50-day moving averages. (Barchart)

ICE weekly outlook: Canola will follow soyoil up or down

Prairie weather another guiding factor

MarketsFarm — Although canola prices have been somewhat erratic over the last weeks, they along with other oilseeds have generally rebounded, according to trader Ken Ball of PI Financial in Winnipeg. Ball commented there has been a good amount of short-covering in soyoil at the Chicago Board of Trade, as markets positioned themselves for an […] Read more


As much as 50 per cent of India’s dal crop was damaged this year due to waterlogging.  Photo: iStock/Getty Images

Pulse weekly outlook: Saskatchewan pulses dealing with dryness

Too early to know what effect grasshoppers, smoke will have

MarketsFarm –  Seeding went well across the province thanks to hot and dry temperatures following a cool spring, said Saskatchewan Pulse Growers (SaskPulse) executive director Carl Potts. However, the dry conditions are still cause for concern.  “A later-than-normal start, but we wrapped up seeding within that normal window that growers typically do,” Potts said. “(It […] Read more

Smoke billows upwards from the Donnie Creek wildfire south of Fort Nelson, B.C. n June 11, 2023. (Photo: B.C. Wildfire Service handout via Reuters)

Western Canada covered in smoke as wildfires loosen grip on Quebec

Over 200 of 449 wildfires now out of control

Ottawa | Reuters — Smoke shrouded Western Canada on Monday as wildfires flared again in the main oil-producing province of Alberta, while firefighters in Quebec doused some of the worst early-season blazes, allowing thousands of evacuees to return home. Canada is enduring its most destructive start to wildfire season, with about 4.8 million hectares — […] Read more

(Brett Holmes Photography/iStock/Getty Images)

Prairie Forecast: Switch in pattern but summer sticking around

Forecast issued June 7, covering June 7-14

The weather models are doing a good job handling all the heat and humidity that has been driving thunderstorms and breaking temperature records across the eastern half of the Prairies over the last week. To the west it has been a little cooler and drier, with not as much instability to deal with, but nonetheless, […] Read more


A climate change activist plays a violin in New York City’s Times Square as Manhattan is shrouded in haze and smoke which drifted south from wildfires in Canada, on June 7, 2023. (Photo: Reuters/Maye-E Wong)

International help rolls in to fight unyielding Canadian wildfires

Almost 80 of Quebec's fires currently out of control

Ottawa | Reuters — Allies around the world are promising to boost support for Canada’s fight against hundreds of blazes amid the country’s worst-ever start to wildfire season, which is fueling concerns about the worsening consequences of climate change. Forest fires continued to burn across Canada on Thursday, forcing thousands of people from their homes […] Read more

File photo of rice growing near Pune in Maharashtra, western India. (ePhotocorp/iStock/Getty Images)

Late Indian monsoon to start in next two days

The monsoon is vital to the country's agricultural production

MarketsFarm – The onset of India’s annual southwest monsoon, which is vital to the country’s agricultural production, is expected to hit the southern state of Kerala within the next 48 hours, according to an update from the India Meteorological Department. The persistence of westerly winds over the Arabian Sea, the increased depth of those westerly […] Read more