Commodity Blog

Posts Tagged ‘harvest’

Soybeans gained on the concern that rains in Brazil may cause flooding, slowing the harvest and harming the quality of the crops. World inventories of soybeans are expected to decline to 58.2 million metric ton, the lowest level in two years, according to the estimates of the US Department of Agriculture. May delivery for soybeans rose $0.14 (1 percent) to $13.8925 per bushel at 13:09 on CBoT.

Copper fell on the concern that the surging oil prices will slow the global economic recovery, diminishing demand for the industrial metal. Oil continues its rally on the tensions in Libya. May futures for copper delivery fell $0.0115 (0.3 percent) to $4.498 per pound by 13:22 on COMEX.

Cotton jumped on the speculation that supply will trail demand. The Chinese imports surged 31 percent January from a year ago, following the jump by 86 percent in the previous year, while the output in the country fell by 6.3 percent in 2010. May delivery for cotton gained by the exchange limit of $0.07 (3.6 percent) to $2.006 as of 14:55 on ICE.

Cotton jumped to a record for the second straight day on the signs of strong demand for fiber from the US. The US Department of Agriculture reported that exports increased 26 percent as of February 3 from a week ago. The USDA predicted that production in the year ending July will total 115.25 million bales, 0.2 percent lower than in the January forecast. March delivery for cotton climbed $0.37 (9 percent) to $1.8758 per pound on ICE. Prices jumped 12 percent this week.

Another commodity posting a second day of records today was corn as demand grew, putting strain on inventories. US export sales advanced 51 percent in the week ended February compared to the previous four weeks, according to the USDA report. The US stockpiles of corn will be equal to about 18 days of consumption before the next harvest, near the record low of 1996. March futures for corn delivery gained $0.005 (0.1 percent) to $6.985 per bushel by 13:15 on CBoT, reaching $7.045 earlier, the highest price for the most-active contract since July 2008.

Sugar rallied today on the speculation that output will trail consumption, causing a global deficit. Production in India, the second biggest grower after Brazil, may be lower than previously predicted. Balrampur, India’s second-largest sugar company, estimated that production in India in the year ending September 30 will be 24.5 million metric tons, compared to the November forecast of 25 million tons.

Australia, the third biggest exporter, will also have reduced output as the crops were harmed by adverse weather. Rabobank estimated that the next harvest will produce 3.5 million metric tons. That’s compared to the previous harvest of 3.6 million tons and the earlier forecast of 4.2 million for the next harvest.

March delivery for raw sugar rose $0.0041 (1.3 percent) to $0.3305 per pound by 11:17 on ICE. May futures for delivery of refined sugar advanced $11.20 (1.5 percent) to $780.70 per metric ton on NYSE.

Sugar jumped today on signs on lower output from Brazil, the largest producer in the world. Output was 18 percent lower than a year ago in Brazil’s Center South, the biggest growing region. As harvest usually end in December, it’s very unlikely to improve significantly. March delivery for raw sugar gained $0.015 (4.8 percent) to $0.325 per pound as of 14:00 on ICE.

Cotton climbed as output tumbled 22 percent in Shandong province, the second largest producer in China, which is biggest grower in the world. Increasing demand and lack of supply boost appeal of the commodity. March futures for cotton delivery gained $0.04 (2.7 percent) to $1.5012 in New York. The price almost doubled this year because of global deficit.

Soybeans gained today on speculation that dry weather will harm crops in Argentina. Soybeans also declined as a stronger dollar diminished demand for commodities. March futures for soybean delivery went up $0.0175 (0.1 percent) to $13.0775 per bushel by 13:15 on CBoT.

Sugar rallied today for a fourth consecutive day on speculation that demand may outpace supply even though India is planning to resume export. Consumption of sugar may reach 165.3 million metric tons, almost 3 million tons more than production. The sweetener more than doubled from the level in May, which was the lowest in more than a year.

Cotton dropped today because of high prices and increasing plating in the US. Acreage may increase by at least 10 percent in the Southwest US. March delivery for cotton dropped $0.0235 (1.6 percent) to $1.4214 as of 14:46 on ICE.

Wheat jumped today as the global recovery improves an outlook for demand, while adverse weather in the US, the largest world grower, may diminish supplies. As of November 21st about 47 percent of the US wheat crop was in good or excellent condition, compared with 64 percent in the previous year. March futures for wheat delivery gained $0.045 (0.7 percent) to $6.8525 per bushel as of 13:15 on CBoT.

Cotton futures advanced the most in nine months on speculation that demand in China, the largest consumer in the world, will be sustained. Cotton output in China may drop as much as 5.5 percent this year to 6.36 million metric tons as adverse weather hurt crops. March delivery for cotton went up $0.048 (4.3 percent) to $1.1659 by 14:59 on ICE.

Crude oil gained today as decline of unemployment claim in the US signaled that economic recovery is accelerating, which may lead for increasing demand for the fuel. US unemployment claims fell from 441,000 to 407,000 last week. January delivery for crude oil added $2.61 to $83.86 per barrel on NYMEX.

Sugar rose on concerns that adverse weather in India, the second largest producer in the world, would curb supplies. Sugar production in the state of Maharashtra, India’s biggest producer of refined sugar, declined 29 percent from October 1st to November 20th, compared to the same period in the previous year, as heavy rainfall slowed the harvest. Sugar declined previously on concerns about sovereign-debt of European countries and conflict between North and South Korea. March delivery for raw sugar rose $0.0083 (3.1 percent) to $0.2733 per pound as of 14:00 on ICE.

Cotton dropped to the lowest level in a month as China tightened rules for bank credit in order to make it hard to speculate on agricultural markets and as the dollar rose. China attempts to prevent hoarding of products and artificial inflation of prices. The dollar surged after North and South Korea exchanged artillery fire, spurring demand for the US currency as a safe haven. March delivery for cotton fell 0.06 (5.1 percent) to $1.1179 per pound by 14:44 on ICE.

Crude oil dropped today on concerns the Ireland won’t be able to resolve its debt problems and crisis will spread to other European countries. Optimism for Ireland bailout receded after Moody’s Investors Service said that it may downgrade Ireland’s credit rating. Concerns for other debt-laden European countries also suppress demand for commodities. January delivery for crude oil dropped $1.13 (1.4 percent) to $80.85 per barrel as of 12:35 on NYMEX.

Corn and soybeans in Brazil may experience a drought similar to the one in 2005, which harmed 13 percent of crop. The country received below-average precipitation since October. Experts say that heavy rains, followed by drought, may be very harmful to harvest. Estimated output of corn next year varies between 51.8 million and 52.7 million metric tons, while expected soybean harvest is put in range between 67.7 million and 69 million tons.

Wheat futures gained today, recovering from the lowest level in six weeks, on speculation that global demand would exceed supplies. Analysts predict that global usage will jump to a record of 668 million tons this year. The world wheat harvest may decline 5.1 percent to 647.7 million metric tons, the lowest level in three years.

The US Department of Agriculture forecast that global inventories of wheat will total 172.51 million metric tons at the end of the marketing year on May 31st, 12 percent down compared to the previous year. Global wheat output will total 642.89 million tons in the marketing year, which began June 1st, according to USDA. Some economists argue that world production may rebound to 661.52 million metric tons next year.

March futures for wheat delivery gained $0.0675 (1 percent) to $6.715 per bushel as of 13:15 on CBoT. Wheat dropped 6.7 percent yesterday on speculation that China will take measures to cool its economy. Prices have rose 40 percent since the end of June as global production deteriorated because of adverse weather.

Wheat reached the highest level in four weeks today on speculation that global supplies is shrinking. Analysts estimated before the government report tomorrow that US supplies of wheat will total 173.53 million metric tons on May 31st, 0.6 percent less than predicted in October. December futures for wheat delivery gained $0.075 (1 percent) to $7.3625 per bushel by 13:15 on CBoT.

Arabica coffee jumped to the highest level in 13 years today on forecast that excessive rains may disrupt supplies from Vietnam. Global output may also decline because of smaller harvest in Brazil, biggest grower in the world. December delivery for Arabica coffee rose $0.0295 (1.4 percent) to $2.081 per pound as of 14:00 on ICE.

Cotton advanced to a record for a fifth consecutive session after output in China declined, causing speculation that it’ll increase imports and that’ll put strain on global stockpiles. Output in China may decline 5 percent in the year beginning September 1st because of natural disasters. December delivery for cotton went up $0.04 (2.8 percent) to the record of $1.4623 per pound at 14:25 on ICE.