European market
After a limited activity during the holiday season, the market begins to be active now.
The euro, after having marked a strong decline at the beginning of the day close to the level of 1.1660, i.e. its lowest for more than three weeks, quickly rebounded to above 1.1720 at the end of the day. European grain prices have integrated this new situation by closing slightly lower in wheat. Exporters obviously remain vigilant about the price differential between Black Sea origins and Western European origins in this second half of the campaign.
Yesterday's session was volatile on the rapeseed market, which, after several consecutive days of decline, recorded a strong rebound. The recent pullback movement, of the order of -25 €/t over the past month, offers certain stakeholders an opportunity to hedge. The prices on Euronext were up in the old as in the new crop. Operators also remain attentive to the state of the crops in the face of the sharp decline in temperatures and short-term logistical difficulties in Western Europe.
American market
Prices were up yesterday in Chicago, erasing the downward movement recorded on Friday during the first session of the year. The strongest upward movements concern soybeans and corn, up on technical levels after the strong decline in recent sessions. The figures of export sales during the week before Christmas, communicated yesterday by the USDA, show a still sustained activity in soybean, exceeding 1.2 Mt.
The return of market participants, and in particular funds, favoured a renewed firmness after the positions' buying on the reached price levels, in parallel with the decline of the dollar observed at the end of the day. North American operators nevertheless remain vigilant in the face of the large volumes of harvests expected in the Southern Hemisphere and the Brazilian and Argentine competition on many products. The situation in Ukraine also worth watching, with no significant progress between the US authorities and other stakeholders regarding the evolution of the conflict.
In wheat, prices in Chicago marked a moderate rebound after the new contract lows reached on Friday. The March 2026 contract goes back above $5.10/bu without changing the trend in place.
Black Sea market
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