Category: Commentary

Late wheat planting and the effects on yield The National Meteorological Center continued to note this week that areas of wheat growth were primarily distributed in western Shandong and eastern Henan. It’s important to note the distribution of farmland in those provinces. This isn’t like Iowa, where crops are grown across the state. Winter wheat… Continue reading Wheat yields; protein prices; futures recap

NBS Price Update Futures Recap…   Subscriber content: Sitonia Consulting provides market intelligence on Chinese agricultural markets. For a free trial, please visit here or email info@sitoniaconsulting.com   Please login to view this page.

Soybean shipments hit a new yearly high of 2.7 million tons over the past week. Since the start of the year, shipments are now at 14.5 million tons, down 3% year on year. Futures Recap…   Subscriber content: Sitonia Consulting provides market intelligence on Chinese agricultural markets. For a free trial, please visit here or email… Continue reading Soybean shipments; futures recap

Hog futures sold off every day this week and hit a new low of 10,215 yuan per ton. This week, prices were down 9.5%. These are the lowest prices since hog futures started trading in 2021, so as prices make new lows, there aren’t any levels of previous support….   Subscriber content: Sitonia Consulting provides… Continue reading Futures Recap

US-China relations and potential for future purchases CBOT soybeans were limit-down yesterday on news that the Trump visit to China was postponed and due to uncertainty about additional soybean purchases. While there is uncertainty around those additional purchases, China has no reason not to continue with its agreement to purchase the 25 million tons per… Continue reading US-China; futures recap

Hog futures fell sharply, with the May contract down over 3%. For rolling front-month futures, this is the lowest that hog futures have traded since being listed in 2021. The selling was mostly limited to the front end of the curve. July futures were down 1.5% but didn’t make new lows, and the September contract… Continue reading Futures Recap

US-China trade meetings going ahead, but China rebukes US over 301 tariffs At a press briefing on Friday, the Ministry of Commerce said that He Lifeng, Vice Premier of the State Council, would lead a delegation to meet their US counterparts for trade negotiations in France from March 14-17. The ministry was also asked about… Continue reading US-China trade; futures recap

USDA makes minimal changes to China balance sheets In the March WASDE report, the USDA increased its estimates for China’s barley imports to 11 million tons for 2025/26, up from 10.5 million tons previously. This also increased China’s feed use of barley from 8.7 million tons to 9.2 million tons. Cotton production was raised from… Continue reading WASDE; spread update; protein prices; futures recap

Soybean shipments to China Futures Recap Agriculture futures prices were lower across the board on Tuesday following the spike higher on Monday. No.2 imported soybeans have been very volatile with prices hitting limit-up on Monday morning, gapping lower in the morning session on Tuesday, and now have gapped higher in the evening session. Soybean meal… Continue reading Soybean shipments; futures recap

Chinese agricultural commodities were sharply higher to start the week. No.1 domestic soybeans reached their highest levels since 2024. The May contract had volumes of 518k, the highest since 2020. No.2 imported soybeans hit limit-up in the morning session, but pared gains in the afternoon sessions. Corn spiked higher in the morning but ended the… Continue reading Futures Recap