Canada Markets

That's a Wrap on 2020

Cliff Jamieson
By  Cliff Jamieson , Canadian Grains Analyst
Connect with Cliff:
@CliffJamieson
This chart shows the percent change in price realized on the continuous active charts for various commodities during the course of 2020. Row crops in particular show no signs of this trend slowing. Note the closing prices for both gold and crude were taken slightly ahead of the Dec. 31 close. (DTN chart by Cliff Jamieson)
This chart shows the percent change in price realized on the continuous active charts for various commodities during the course of 2020. Row crops in particular show no signs of this trend slowing. Note the closing prices for both gold and crude were taken slightly ahead of the Dec. 31 close. (DTN chart by Cliff Jamieson)

The data on the attached chart was from the data on the continuous active monthly futures chart for all but the Canadian dollar, which is derived from the spot Canadian dollar chart.

Commodities had a strong showing in 2020, but soft red winter wheat, corn, soybeans, soybean oil, soymeal, canola, crude palm oil and rapeseed also reached fresh contract highs on Dec. 31 -- a positive way to end the year as far as markets go.

An informal analyst discussion today also included a look at futures markets in China, with corn and soybeans moving to new highs despite the ongoing bearish news surrounding the massive quantities of grain that have been estimated to be held in this country. When it comes to actual supplies of grain within this country, it could easily be a case of we don't know what we don't know.

Despite the move, farming has not gotten any easier, with this week's Canadian Federation of Independent Business's Business Barometer for December showing both the short-term (three-month) and long-term (12-month) business sentiment indices for agriculture falling during the past month, which both reflect a weakening forward expectation of business performance. The 12-month index of 47.5 and the three-month index of 40 are the lowest seen since August and September, respectively, while are both below the index of 50, with levels above 50 signaling growth in the industry.

Picking tops in a market is never easy but for now, the trend is your friend. We look forward to the upcoming calendar year, the stories of 2020-21 production sold at attractive levels and the opportunity to start looking ahead to 2021-22.

**

DTN 360 Poll

This week's poll asks if you view soybeans as a crop choice for 2021. You can weigh in with your thoughts on this poll found on the lower-right side of the DTN Home Page. We thank you for sharing your ideas.

Wishing all a safe, happy and prosperous 2021!

Cliff Jamieson can be reached at cliff.jamieson@dtn.com

Follow him on Twitter @CliffJamieson

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This chart shows the percent change in price realized on the continuous active charts for various commodities during the course of 2020. Row crops in particular show no signs of this trend slowing. Note the closing prices for both gold and crude were taken slightly ahead of the Dec. 31 close. (DTN chart by Cliff Jamieson)

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