In Chicago, soybeans were down 3.50 US cents for March at 1,137.50 US cents/bushel. The May contract fell 2.75 US cents to 1,153.25 US cents/bushel. Soybean meal for May rose by US$ 4.90 to US$ 313.80/short ton.
From a trader's perspective, politics dominated at the end of the week. The US Supreme Court's ruling that the President cannot use the IEEPA to impose tariffs initially triggered risk aversion. Market participants see this as possible leverage for China in future negotiations. The subsequent announcement of a blanket 10% tariff option with a term of 150 days caused a stir, but did not bring about a clear trend reversal.
Fundamentally, demand remains a strong argument. At 798,216 tons, sales were significantly higher than the previous week and 66.2% up on the previous year. China dominated with 415,500 tons, followed by Egypt and Japan. Soybean meal was also convincing at 480,937 tons and clearly exceeded market expectations.
The canola market presented a mixed picture. In Winnipeg, canola turned positive, May rose by Can-$ 2.10 to Can-$ 686.70/t and was closely aligned with Chicago. In Paris, on the other hand, rapeseed was under pressure, losing €4.25 to €488.50/t in May. This means that the oilseed complex remains in a tense phase, both politically and on the charts.
