Everyone’s (or most peoples) favorite time of year is finally here. The time where we can get together with family and friends, have some great drinks and food, and get festive with our favorite movies, songs, or that ugly Christmas sweater that we just don’t want to throw away year after year!
Here at Agfinity we like a combination of it all. We all consider each other family here, and so to get together for great food and drinks, throw on your favorite ugly Christmas sweater and put on some Christmas tunes is just a nice gift we all love to share together when we can. We also want to extend that care to all our loyal customers and wish you the best of holidays and hopefully you can spend it the right way, being with the ones we love and showing them how much we care with great gifts, whether that be here or in Mexico, we all have different ways we love to spend our time during this holiday season.
For me this year a great holiday season experience has been giving guitar lessons. From teaching different people from all walks of life, old and young, one thing is for sure is that everyone wants to learn a Christmas song (or two or three) that they can play for the ones they love. If you and your family are looking for some great Christmas songs to listen to together, I would highly recommend “Christmas Time is Here”, “Santa Clause is Coming to Town”, and “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas”, those are just a few of the great Christmas songs I have had students request to learn and it’s great to see the joy it brings when they can share those beautiful songs with their friends and family.
Again, from all of us here at Agfinity, Happy Holidays, and have yourself a very merry little Christmas!
Because Farming is Forever
Austin Fiddes
Market Report – Bryce Taylor
It’s beginning to feel a lot like Christmas. Tis the season of Christmas parties and to maybe take some time off during the holidays. We would like to extend our best wishes for a safe, healthy, and happy holiday season and share our gratitude to all the producers, buyers, and carriers that we have had the pleasure of working with over the year.
The markets are showing low volatility as of late and seem to be flattening out. Domestically, currently there is not a lot of demand for future contracts as buyers are holding off waiting to see what the new year brings. In world news, North American commodities are seen to be not so affordable on the global market which is affecting exports. Russia and Australia’s above average 2022 crop is also weighing down the grain and pulse prices here at home.
Chicago wheat climbed a little last week but is still at 13-month lows as global supplies weigh on U.S markets. Mounting Russian wheat exports are up 33 per cent from the same period in 2021 and forecasts for a record crop in Australia have also eased global supply concerns. This news has added more weight to North American markets continuing to put downward pressure on wheat prices. Delivered prices for #1 HRS are hovering at or below $12.00/BU for the past 2 weeks. We have seen programs and specials for up to $12.50/BU delivered.
North American canola exports are down due to Australia 2022 canola production at 7.3 million tons – which would be a new record. Australia Canola exports are to push six million tons. The country averages 2.5 to 2.7 million tons. “Six million tons is going to put a dent in our exports,” the experts say. Canola prices were inching downward in the last few weeks but had a rally on the January and March futures of around $0.35/BU last week. On the morning of Dec 14, it sat at $19.86/BU January on the futures market. A GPO target of over $20.00/BU is being offered at many elevators.
The current Milling oat market demand is very low. December to April prices is hard to come by. The marketing outlook for milling oats is for future contracts. There are cash bid contracts available for $4.50 -$5.00/BU April and May. In the meantime, feed lots have been taking advantage of the heavier oats available. We saw several buyers paying $340/MT or $5.24/MT Delivered at the end of November, now the buyers are pulling back to $325-330/MT in Central Alberta.
Feed barley prices have flattened out as well over the past few weeks. With the ongoing speculation of train cars continuing to be delivered to Lethbridge and area, feedlots are holding off buying for Jan-Mar until the new year to see where the market goes. However, due to freight availability for Barley further away, slightly higher priced corn relative to barley seems to be a good option for feedlots. Currently there is demand from several buyers for barely at $430-$435/MT DLVD Lethbridge for December and January movement.
A quick look at pulses, #2 Red Lentils have been stagnant at around $0.34 per pound delivered. #2 Yellow peas have been steady around $13.00 per bushel delivered. We are currently seeing some opportunities for #2 Green Peas of $14.75 per bushel delivered in Central Alberta. Faba beans have been quiet. We have seen prices around $11.50 FOB available in Central Alberta.
Seller’s Tip: Currently there is low volatility in the market. One tool to minimize risk and to take advantage of the continued higher than average prices is incremental selling. If you want to peel off a few loads each month from January to March now is the time to plan. Please call us today at 1-888-969-5552 to talk pricing and movement strategy.