US soya bean crop forecast knocks oilseed rape prices
Combining oilseed rape near Chelmsford, Essex. Photo by Guy Dibble. Spot oilseed rape prices fell by £2.70/t in the week to 31 August, to average £308.80/t ex-farm, as expectations of a record US soya bean output weighed on the market.
The latest US Department of Agriculture crop report confirmed that high yields should lead to a record crop of 110.5m tonnes in 2016-17, with 73% of the crop in good to excellent condition. This weighed on oilseed prices, essentially capping any price gains that could have been seen in the European market due to poor harvest results, said a report by AHDB Cereals and Oilseeds.
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Even so, rapeseed prices were cushioned somewhat by Oil World revising its global oilseed rape production forecast down for 2016-17 to an eight-year low of 60.6m tonnes.
Lower than average carryover stocks and revisions to EU production suggested global rapeseed supplies could be tight, said the AHDB report. This could potentially push prices further above other oilseeds such as sunflower seed and soya beans.
Chicago soya bean (Sep-16) and Paris rapeseed futures (Nov-16) also fell in the week to Tuesday (30 August), down almost $25/t (£19/t) to $354.94/t (£270.19/t) and €7.75/t (£6.57/t) to €370.25/t (£313.98/t), respectively. This added to the pressure on UK oilseed rape prices.