Latest UK trades/news
Subdued trading conditions remain with only isolated low-volume scattered business to report so far today.
Spot wheatfeed pellets ex Wellingborough (8mm) reported done £103, with bog-standard material ex Icklingham under offer at £101.
In the north 6mm wheatfeed pellets ex Leith traded £116 and 6mm ex Silloth £114.50 also done.
Latest trades/markets
After a relatively busy May, June has gone terribly flat with many compounders reporting stagnant sales and slow off-take.
Odd loads trading here and there seems to be very much the order of the day.
Spot distillers ex Portbury done yesterday at £185, and spot gluten ex Liverpool done today at £165.
Also hearing spot Liverpool soya hulls done at £145 and spot liverpool citrus pellets traded £140 today.
Wheatfeed? All over the shop.
Latest UK trades/market comment
Never seen a falling market before Sonny?
Latest trades/markets
No, they aren't last night's winning numbers they are in fact all reported traded prices for spot/June wheatfeed yesterday (ex mill levels). Prices depending on location, pellet size & movement restrictions (eg weekend collections) etc.
Lots of activity yesterday with buyers one minute turning sellers the next, sellers selling at £2/tonne less than they bought at earlier in the day and then turning back into buyers again. At least the broker makes a commission, I'm not sure if anyone else is making much out of it. Hey who cares, I need the commissions anyway to fund the blog & pay for all the ink I'm using writing all the contracts out!
Oct/Apr winter runs also reported traded yesterday at £115 basis SE range.
Other business done yesterday includes spot Liverpool citrus at £140.
The market really is changing by the minute, so call or email for the latest.
UK trades/markets
As grain prices continue to slide the wheatfeed market keeps on going with it with plenty of nearby material swilling around in the market. Prices are all over the place, with all sorts of money reported as trading depending on whether the person actually doing the reporting is a buyer or a seller! Pick a number anywhere between £100 and £130, add on your birthdate, subtract the number of your house and divide by how many kids you've got.
Spot corn gluten feed pellets reported traded yesterday at £164 ex Liverpool and spot PK's done at £129. Also offered spot citrus pulp pellets ex Liverpool, looking for interest.
Resale offers kicking around on hipro soya Humber & South Coast £POA.
The rapemeal market is drifting easier again, aided no doubt by the fact that seed futures are down EUR8-10 today following crude oil's decline.
"Is that a buyer over there?"
UK trades/markets
Wheat cash & futures markets keep edging lower.
Wheatfeed continues to get dragged down by wheat with Jun/Sep pellets traded ex South East locations at £110 yesterday, down £5 in a week. Interestingly in many cases recently it's been compounders who are selling these summer positions. An indication that May compound sales have been poor, or simply end-users juggling their books? I know where my money is going on that one, and it doesn't look like it's going to get any better in June either. Certainly I am hearing stories of end-users cancelling next week deliveries and asking if May balances can be deferred into June. Like they think things are going to pick up in June, that well known big summer feeding month!
Bank Holiday weekend material appears to be trading/offered at all sorts of prices, with transport difficult (ie expensive) to get across the long weekend, this is being reflected in the price that merchants/end-users are willing/able to pay. As one wag said yesterday "I haven't got the room, I haven't got the lorries & I haven't got the sales, it wouldn't matter if it was £50/tonne!"
Oct08/Apr09 traded a couple of times yesterday at £116 ex the standard South East range of locations, with other bits and pieces reported done at nominal premiums for 8mm pellets & specific mills.
Hand to mouth buying is the order of the day on pretty much everything else.
Got potential resale offers on hi-pro soya Humber/Southampton £POA.
The rapemeal market is dead, with prices around £8-10 up off their recent lows buyers have backed away. Stocks appear to be more than adequate to cover crushers planned downtime during June/July, ahead of new crop in August. The weather appears conducive to favourable crop development and existing crusher/shipper sales are reputedly only around 25% of anticipated production.
Nearby Erith material reported traded £178 yesterday and £177 this morning for odd loads here and there.
UK trades/markets
As the EU harvest draws ever nearer domestic cereal prices continue to ease, narrowing the differential between old and new crop months.
UK wheat & barley are down around a fiver from last week's levels and cheap new crop barley offers attracting consumer interest to the detriment on cereal replacers.
This is dragging wheatfeed down with it. Jun/Sep pellets traded ex SE mills yesterday at £112, seller over.
Spot soya hulls ex Liverpool reported done at £147.
Spot Erith rapemeal traded a couple of times at £179 yesterday.
UK trades/markets
As the harvest draws ever nearer grain prices continue to slide. With ideal growing conditions across much of Europe a bumper crop is in the offing.
Strategie Grains are sticking with their estimate of a 15% rise on the year for the European Union's soft wheat output to 128.3 million tons. But their analytical report added that the crop could still come in anywhere up to 144 million tons depending on the weather over the next 6 weeks. That would be a whopping 30% increase on 2007.
LIFFE wheat futures have fallen over £50/tonne since late February, with May down £9.50 this week alone.
Compounders are reporting cheap grain offers suddenly emerging from the woodwork and as a consequence are backing away from their buying ideas from earlier in the week.
Jun/Sep wheatfeed pellets ex South East mills traded yesterday at £115, yet today I'd have at least half a dozen sellers at the price. There's a bid in the market today at £113 reportedly, I'd like to see it! £100 here we come? I think so.
Remember all the hype around crude oil when it broke through $100/barrel, and the guy that bought it said he'd done so just because he wanted to be the first to trade it in three figures. Who's going to be the first to be able to buy wheatfeed in double figures this year? I think it might happen sooner than you think.
Spot Corby material reported done today at £117.
Buyers wanted. Buy now before it gets any lower!
UK trades/markets
UK compounders are reporting a (not entirely unexpected) sharp downturn in sales so far this month, with one yesterday telling me that first week May volume was almost two-thirds down on last week April.
This scenario appears pretty much the norm across the whole of the industry. Although compounders generally appear to have only fairly light coverage across the summer period, this light coverage may in fact unfortunately go much further to fulfilling their requirements than they may have hoped.
Other comments around this week such as "every second call is from a haulier looking for work" and "we haven't traded yet this week," are hardly filling the trade with enthusiasm.
Well, that last comment didn't come from me. I did trade yesterday. Spot wheatfeed meal DELIVERED at £110. OK, it was for a load that was already onboard a lorry but that was the best bid I could get.
Nearby wheatfeed pellet offers are still around the £120 mark with availability problems at Icklingham adding some support. What's going to happen once those floodgates re-open is anybodys guess. June/Sep last reported traded at £118 for SE mills, now widely offered at the price against best valuations with me of £115. Meal ex Midlands is offered at £115.
There's resale offers around on rapemeal £POA depending on location/position. Liverpool, Humber, Erith, Munich, everybody talk about pop music.
Not much in the way of resale on soya, although may have some IP hi-pro available in the north and any origin hi-pro in the south, again £POA.
Citrus, Soya Hulls, 32% Suns ex Liverpool, show me the interest.
UK trades/markets
After a flurry of activity last week with sellers & consumers alike juggling their positions around, the wheatfeed market appears to have fallen into a deep, deep sleep.
With spot pellets trading around the £120 mark ex South East locations for the last couple of days of last week, buyers appear to have had their fill for now and seem generally content to sit and wait for lower levels.
There are some reports of £118 trading for slightly more out of the way locations than the typical Tilbury/Corby/Wellingborough/Peterborough range. Certainly at least one flour mill took £116 for Saturday collections. June/Sep also traded at £118 Friday, as did spot meal out of Liverpool at £120.
Other products are generally lethargic, spot soya hulls ex Liverpool a stand-off with buyers ideas at £141, sellers at £143.
On the rapemeal front the crushers have raised their aspirations around £10/tonne over the last fortnight as the seed market has risen. Consumers are pretty much saying, well if I didn't want it then, I certainly don't want it now!
Planned downtime across the tail end of old-crop months may prevent there being too much blood shed for now. August onwards will be interesting however as the I'd guess that the crushers currently have a lot less sold than normal. I personally can't see spot demand being there when the time comes. With Aug/Oct priced at a comparatively cramped discount of just £4-5 under Nov/Apr there aren't many takers out there.
I can hear the crushers now screaming "but that means were cheap for Nov/Apr!!"
No it doesn't. It means you're not as dear for Nov/Apr as you are for Aug/Oct!
Meanwhile nearby citrus pellets are about as popular as Gordon Brown.
Pass me the factor 30.
Latest UK trades/markets
The rapeseed market has bounced the last few days with Paris futures up around EUR30 since the beginning of the month, effectively following Chicago & crude oil higher. Meal sellers have consequently put away their pencil sharpeners, just a couple of days after getting them out, effectively killing off all hopes of any forward business for the time being.
If there is going to be any trade on rapemeal then it will be on a strictly hand-to-mouth basis for the time being.
Wheatfeed pellets have finally found interest with £120 trading for May ex the standard Corby, Wellingborough, Tilbury range and down to £118 out of mills slightly further afield. June onwards however is still a cat and mouse game although September on its own, strangely, traded yesterday at £120.
Not much business has been done yet for the winter with sellers wanting a premium to summer levels & buyers wanting a discount based on wheat prices.
Spot wheatfeed meal ex Liverpool traded £120.
Spot soya hulls Liverpool traded yesterday £143.
Resale offers around on citrus nearby, looking for interest. Also looking for interest on nearby Liverpool 32% sunpellets.
Maize meal ex Worksop available for last half May £POA.
Also may have a possibility of getting hold of some limited quantities of spot IP hipro soya ex Humber £POA.
Latest UK trades/markets
An un-named UK grain broker was quoted on Dow Jones earlier in the week saying that you could almost watch the wheat growing. Now it's got a bit of sun on it's back you can certainly see where he was coming from.
With the southern EU harvest only three or four weeks away from kicking off the chances of a late weather scare are diminishing by the day.
As reported earlier German farmers' association Deutscher Raiffeisenverband (which incidentally is worth 92 in Scrabble) forecast a 15.8% rise in 2008-09 German wheat output at 23.9 million tons.
This is broadly in line with the IGC's estimate of a 15% increase EU-wide.
No surprises then to see the wheatfeed market continue to slip. Nearby availablity problems at Icklingham (due to lack of demand for the head product) have supported the market a little this week with £124 trading most days ex Corby/Wellingborough type locations. Unconfirmed reports also suggest that £123 may also have traded yesterday.
For now buyers ideas for next week are lining up at £120 out of that kind of area.
Further forward straight Sept on its own has traded today at £120 basis Wellingborough/Corby/Dogsthorpe. With Jun/Sep also likely buyable at the price basis south east mills incl Tilbury.
Spot rapemeal ex Liverpool reported traded yesterday £169 and £170, strangely a discount to Erith fixings which traded £172. Beyond that sellers have pushed their ideas up and buyers have walked away.
Spot soya hulls in Liverpool reported done yesterday at £141 and £143.
Maize meal ex Worksop available for last half May £POA.
Full IP hipro soya very limited quantities available around £330.00 spot ex Humber.
Suns 32% Argy small quantity available ex Liv around the £187.00 mark.
Latest UK trades/markets
The weather has certainly improved over the weekend & with the outlook set fair for much of the country for the rest of the week summer finally seems to have arrived.
Its arrival also hearalds turnout & with it of course a slowdown in feed demand. Many compounders seem to have set their stall out to take things hand-to-mouth across the summer, and it in no surprise to see that what little demand has been around in this holiday-shortened week has been for spot material.
The rape market is still pretty flat, with maybe some modest premiums to be had for nearby material. Erith fixings asking around the £170 mark, with Jun/Jul quoted £169, Aug/Oct £150 and Nov/Apr £158. Forward asking prices are a little above last week's lows as continental levels have picked up slightly. This isn't however making much difference in the UK where crushers are keen sellers. Liverpool prices, traditionally a significant premium to Erith, are now pretty much level money with £169 trading for spot yesterday.
The wheatfeed market is also pretty flat. Fixing problems at Icklingham this week having a knock-on effect at nearby mills and spot fixings out of the likes of Corby, Wellingborough, Dogsthorpe changing hands at around £124. Beyond this week though nobody wants to know. The forward market is quiet with the last reported trade at £122 for May/Sep ex similar locations.
Soya hulls ex Liverpool last reported done at £143, still potentially buyable at the same money, although one report suggests that £147 was doen for Avon material yesterday.
Nearby citrus pulp in the north west looking for interest around the low £140's.
Full IP hipro soya very limited quantities available around £330.00 spot ex Humber.
Suns 32% Argy small quantity available ex Liv around the £187.00 mark.
Latest UK trades/offers/comment
Talking to a large northern compounder this morning I asked him if he was up to much, he said he'd been in the office until 9pm earlier in the week processing feed orders. Today he said he's picked the phones up twice just to check that they are still working! Anyone who wanted feed in May has got their order in last month at last month's prices. No surprises there then.
The rapemeal market continues to drift lower as crushers and shippers alike remain aggressive sellers and buyers are cautious and unsure of demand this summer. There is still some front-end premium to be had, if there is any buying interest around that's where it is. June onwards however is friendless.
Erith quotes today: Spot May fixings £170 traded yesterday; May unfixed 169; Jun/Jul £163; Aug/Oct £148; and Nov08/Apr09 at £155.
The wheatfeed trade is still in stand-off mode with millers holding out for last months prices and consumers looking for next months! Whilst some compounders still have tonnage left to take from old April contracts that should at least provide some off-take at the beginning of the month. What is going to happen as May wears on however is a different kettle of fish.
Spot Liverpool soya hulls reported traded yesterday morning at £141, then widely reported in the afternoon at £143. This is up from last week's traded levels of £138-140. If any millers are still a seller at last week's money on this one then I'm your man!
Spot/May Liverpool PKs have been trading recently at £136. Also got some resale offers on spot citrus pellets, spot Liverpool 48% soya, May/Jul Humber tapioca & Braz maize all £POA.
Full IP hipro soya very limited quantities available around £330.00 spot ex Humber.
Suns 32% Argy small quantity available ex Liv around £187.00
Spot maize distillers grains on resale ex Avon last reported done at £192 earlier in the week.
UK prices/trades/markets
Its Ascension Day, which means that large chunks of the continent including France & Germany are closed today. With our May Day holiday lined up for Monday it seems unlikely that there is going to be much business going on until Tuesday next week when the market settles down again. LIFFE wheat has opened with July down 95p to £162.05, there will be no trades on French milling wheat, rapeseed and corn today.
The rapemeal market continues to drift lower as crushers and shippers alike remain aggressive sellers and buyers are cautious, concerned that May 1st compound feed price hikes will see sales plummet. There is still some front-end premium to be had, if there is any buying interest around that's where it is. June onwards however is friendless.
West coast rape crush estimate sales currently 50% for summer 30% for winter. East Coast rape crush estimate sales currently 40% for summer 15% for winter.
Erith quotes today: 1st/2nd May fixings £172 traded yesterday; May unfixed 170; Jun/Jul £163; Aug/Oct £148; and Nov08/Apr09 at £155.
Feed wheat and barley offers are suddenly appearing on the domestic market from die-hard long-holders guilty of over egging the pudding, conscious of the still big price difference between old and new crop. Subsequently some compounders are emerging as resellers of cereal substitutes like tapioca, maize and wheatfeed bought long-ago when wheat futures were topping £200/tonne.
The wheatfeed trade has largely degenerated into a stand-off recently with millers holding out for higher prices and consumers backing away. A Corby mill finally became the first miller to break ranks (no pun intended) and capitulate on Tuesday selling May/Sep ex Corby at £122.00 with uncorroborated rumours of further "under the counter" deals being concluded.
Spot Liverpool soya hulls reported traded yesterday at £140. Spot/May Liverpool PKs have been trading recently at £136, and spot Liverpool citrus pellets reported done £144. Also got resale May/Jul Humber tapioca & Braz maize £POA.
Full IP hipro soya very limited quantities available around £330.00 spot ex Humber.
Suns 32% Argy small quantity available ex Liv around £187.00
Looking for spot maize distillers grains on resale Liverpool or Avon if anybody has any to sell.
Latest UK trades/markets
Rapemeal remains interesting with some huge price differences around depending on exactly when material is available. Spot fixings out of Liverpool for collection today made £199 yesterday, yet D/o 1st May product has been done some £20/tonne below that, and D/o 5th May offered at £172.
Erith quotes today: 1st/2nd May fixings £172 traded; May unfixed 170; May/Jul £165; Aug/Oct £149; and Nov08/Apr09 at £155.
Wheatfeed pellets are also drifting lower on lack of buying interest as cheap wheat and barley offers suddenly appear on the domestic market. May/Sep ex Wellingborough/Corby traded Friday at £124.50. Sellers also looking for interest Oct08/Apr09 with £139 deld offered basis Staffs/Cheshire areas & £145 basis Cumbria. Spot 6mm pellets traded ex Liverpool yesterday £138.
Spot Liverpool soya hulls traded last week at £140, and Oct08/Apr09 traded at £144.
Looking for spot maize distillers grains on resale Liverpool or Avon if anybody has any to sell.
Spot/May Liverpool PKs have been trading recently at £136, and spot Liverpool citrus pellets reported done £147 end of last week.
Also got resale May/Jul Humber Braz maize £POA.
Latest UK trades/markets
A typical slow start to the week with the overnight market reversing much of Friday night's losses.
Whilst out-and-out spot rapemeal remains tight, the forward market continues to ease. Erith quotes today: Spot fixings £182; Straight May 167; May/Jul £165; Aug/Oct £149; and Nov08/Apr09 at £155.
Wheatfeed pellets are also drifting lower on lack of buying interest as the wheat market is suddenly not as tight as many had expected, and harvest not too far away in the northern hemisphere. May/Sep ex Wellingborough/Corby traded Friday at £124.50. Sellers also looking for interest Oct08/Apr09 with £139 deld offered basis Staffs/Cheshire areas & £145 basis Lancs/Cumbria.
Spot Liverpool soya hulls traded last week at £140, and Oct08/Apr09 traded at £144.
Looking for spot maize distillers grains on resale Liverpool or Avon if anybody has any to sell.
Spot/May Liverpool PKs have been trading recently at £136, and spot Liverpool citrus pellets reported done £147 last week.
Latest UK trades/markets
Falling markets, remember them? You must do. The days when you can't find a buyer for love nor money. The grass is growing, the sun is shining, livestock numbers are falling and you can't give stuff away. Also known as this summer, coming soon to a compound mill near you!
The rapemeal market continues to ease. Erith quotes today: Straight May 167, May/Jul £165, Aug/Oct £149 and Nov08/Apr09 at £156.
Wheatfeed pellets are also drifting lower on lack of buying interest as the wheat market is suddenly not as tight as many had expected. South East mills offered at £129 for straight May on it's own and Jun/Sep quoted at £126, and Oct08/Apr09 quoted at £130. May/Sep delivered into Cheshire/Staffs area quoted at £139, could probably do Oct08/Apr09 at the same money.
Spot Liverpool soya hulls traded earlier in the week at £140, with a possibility of finding straight May at the price. Oct08/Apr09 last traded at £144.
Spot Avon maize distillers grains available on resale £POA.
Spot/May Liverpool PKs have been trading at £136, and spot Liverpool citrus pellets reported done £147 this week.
Latest UK trades/markets - rape/wheatfeed slide
The rapemeal market continues to ease. Erith quotes today: May/Jul £167 (unch), Aug/Oct Erith £153 (down £2) and Nov08/Apr09 at £158 (down £3).
Wheatfeed pellets are also drifting lower, with today's resale offers around a pound lower than yesterday. South East mills offered at £131 for straight May on it's own and Jun/Sep quoted at £127, and Oct08/Apr09 quoted at £132. May/Sep delivered into Cheshire/Staffs area quoted at £139. Buying interest wanted.
Spot Liverpool soya hulls traded yesterday at £140, with a possibility of straight May at the price. Oct08/Apr09 traded yesterday at £144. Spot Avon also trading yesterday at £141.
Spot Avon maize distillers grains available on resale £190, looking for interest.
Spot/May Liverpool PKs have been trading at £136, and spot Liverpool citrus pellets reported done £147 yesterday.
Got interest in nearby oatfeed pellets, looking for offers.
