Canola futures ended lower on Thursday, retreating from early gains as the North American agricultural markets reacted to the latest supply-demand estimates from the USDA.
The USDA lowered its projection for US soybean ending stocks to 175 million bushels, from 190 million in November. Both canola and soybeans had been posting solid gains ahead of the report, but the downward revision was not as steep as expected and prices turned lower.
Chart-based selling added to the declines in canola, as speculators booked profits and values backed away from nearby technical resistance. Strength in the Canadian dollar was another bearish influence in the background.
However, solid end user demand and the need to ration canola supplies going forward provided underlying support.
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