Archive for March, 2009
USDA REPORT: SUMMARY FOR PROSPECTIVE PLANTINGS, GRAIN STOCKS
Tuesday, March 31st, 2009
CHICAGO (Dow Jones)–The following table is provided as a service
to Dow Jones Newswires subscribers in conjunction with the U.S.
Department of Agriculture’s prospective plantings and quarterly
grain stocks reports. The reports were released Tuesday.
Estimates are in millions of acres for 2009 U.S. prospective
planting report, billions of bushels of grain stocks as of March
1, 2009.
Prospective Plantings
Tuesday’s 2008
USDA Average Range Seedings
Corn 84.986 84.548 81.400-89.000 85.982
Soybeans 76.024 79.251 75.900-81.500 75.718
All Wheat 58.638 58.856 56.700-63.000 63.147
Other Spg W 13.304 13.639 13.000-14.007 14.135
Durum 2.445 2.622 2.200-2.800 2.731
Cotton 8.812 8.32 7.80-8.56 9.47
Grain Stocks
2008 Dec 1 2008 Mar 1
Tuesday’s USDA USDA
USDA Average Range Stocks Stocks
Corn 6.958 7.003 6.888-7.146 10.084 6.859
Soybeans 1.302 1.322 1.295-1.353 2.276 1.434
Wheat 1.037 1.062 0.980-1.113 1.422 0.709
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EHedger Article On Acreage Projections
Friday, March 27th, 2009
Read EHedger’s Acreage outlook, found exclusively on agriculture.com.
The March 31 USDA Planting Intentions report is always one of the most significant reports of the year for the corn and soybean markets, as it takes the first stab at putting together the acreage jigsaw for the nation’s two major crops, and allows analysts to start compiling balance sheets with government-approved numbers. Click here for more.
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Argentina Farmers To Lift Strike, But See Drawn-Out Conflict
Friday, March 27th, 2009
BUENOS AIRES (Dow Jones)–Argentina’s farmers plan to lift a week-long strike Friday night as planned, but renewed protests are likely if the government refuses to lower the export taxes on grains, said a spokesman from the Argentine Rural Confederation, or CRA.
The sixth meeting this year between government officials and farm group leaders is scheduled for Tuesday, but if no progress is made, farmers are will go on strike again “for sure,” the CRA spokesman said in an interview Friday.
Argentina’s farmers continued to block roads across much of the country, sporadically letting traffic flow after ensuring that no trucks loaded with grains or live cattle were moving.
The conflict appears to be moving toward a similar deadlock as last year, when farmers launched a series of crippling strikes and roadblocks over a four-month period to protest a sliding-scale grain export scheme. The scheme meant extremely high duties during the commodities price peak in early 2008.
The farmers secured a Senate vote to defeat the sliding-scale tax scheme, but with international commodity prices plunging since then and a brutal drought cutting production this season, farmers say that the fixed export taxes are still too high. Exports of soybeans, the country’s top crop, are taxed at 35%.
“This conflict is totally different. Last year we were fighting for a part of the profits that the government wanted to expropriate … now we’re fighting just to see a profit, Argentine Agrarian Federation Vice President Pablo Orsolini told Radio Mundo.
However, with economic growth dropping sharply due to the international financial crisis and Argentina unable to tap foreign bond markets to finance stimulus measures and a heavy calendar of debt payments, the government has said a tax reduction isn’t in the cards.
The government is heavily dependent on income from the farm sector, which makes up more than 40% of exports. The export tax on soybeans alone made up about 10% of the government’s tax take last year.
Last week, the farmers pressed congress for tax relief but were unable to get the quorum needed for debate at the House of Representatives.
Farmers are also angry with the federal government’s decision to divide up some of the revenue from soybeans to the provinces.
By forcing governors to sign on to the plan in exchange for the funds, the government is hoping to undercut provincial support for the farmers and build support ahead of midterm congressional elections.
Even the opposition socialist party governor of the farm-belt province of Santa Fe, Hermes Binner, has decided to accept the funds.
Despite the risk of alienating rural voters, tight provincial budgets have made the funds too enticing to refuse for the cash-strapped governors.
The new tax-sharing program will steer about ARS4.4 billion ($1.2 billion) more to the provinces in 2009, according to local consultancy Abeceb.com.
With both farmers and the government digging in, it isn’t clear how another drawn-out, bruising conflict can be avoided.
“We don’t know how this conflict is going to end … we don’t see a solution in the short term,” the leader of one of the farm groups told Dow Jones Newswires last Friday.
-By Shane Romig, Dow Jones Newswires; 54-11-4590-2438;
shane.romig@dowjones.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
03-27-09 1336ET
Copyright (c) 2009 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
DJ info:
N/DJAG,N/DJCS,N/DJOS,N/OSAG,N/OSCM,N/OSFR,N/AGC,N/AGR,N/BON,N/CMD,N/CRN,N/CTL,N
DJFX,N/DJS,N/DJSS,N/DJWI,N/EMT,N/FCTV,N/GEN,N/GRN,N/INT,N/LAB,N/OSD,N/PLT,N/SNE
,N/STK,N/TRD,N/TSY,N/WHT
FSN60163 ACF FINANCIAL GENERAL GRAIN MEAT OILSEEDS
2009-03-27 17:36:12 UTC
^^^^^^
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WEBINAR: Planting Intentions Preview!!!
Thursday, March 26th, 2009
Please click below for an informative webinar detailing EHedger’s expectations for Tuesday’s USDA Planting Intentions Report!
This short webinar provides historic data, useful charts, and includes EHedger’s expected results of the report due out March 31st. Use this presentation and the tools EHedger can provide for price protection in the upcoming marketing years!
https://cc.readytalk.com/play?id=004fymx4
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IGC: 2009-10 World Grain Output 2nd Highest On Record
Thursday, March 26th, 2009
LONDON (Dow Jones)–The world’s 2009-10 grain crop is expected to be the second largest crop on record, forecast at 1.725 billion metric tons, the International Grains Council said Thursday.
This is around 3% lower than world grain production in 2008-09 as grain plantings fell slightly due to some switching to oilseeds, said the report.
However, increased stocks will offset the drop in production on the year, keeping grain supplies at an all-time high, said the IGC.
“There are some indications of weakening grain demand, especially for animal feed, due to financial and economic difficulties in many countries,” said the report.
The IGC estimates world wheat production in 2009-10 at 651 million tons, down 5% on 2008-09 output of 688 million tons, with an expected 1% fall in plantings.
World wheat carry-over stocks in 2009-10 are expected to rise to 171 million tons, from 160 million tons in 2008-09.
“Winter wheat is developing well in Europe and the CIS (Commonwealth of Independent States) and rains in China and the U.S. southern Plains eased crop concerns there,” said the report.
-By Sarah McFarlane, Dow Jones Newswires; +44 (0)20 7842 9327;
sarah.mcfarlane@dowjones.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
03-26-09 1035ET
Copyright (c) 2009 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
DJ info:
N/DJAG,N/DJCS,N/DJOS,N/OSAG,N/OSCM,N/AGC,N/CMD,N/CRN,N/DJWI,N/FCTV,N/GRN,N/WHT
FSN39183 AC GENERAL GRAIN
2009-03-26 14:35:47 UTC
^^^^^^
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