D'arce McMillan

Saskatoon

Freelance Markets Columnist at The Western Producer

I am a freelance markets columnist for The Western Producer, Canada's largest agricultural newspaper. I have covered agriculture for 30 years. Posts are my own.

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Articles

Ag markets find new trade levels following tariff shocks

3 weeks ago | producer.com | D'arce McMillan

Uncertainty caused by tariffs remains the dominant force in global markets, but the initial shock and price gyrations are settling down. Further shake ups could be around the corner, but let’s look at how markets have reacted in the past few weeks since the tariff wars began.
Crop market depression starts to lighten, except canola

2 months ago | producer.com | D'arce McMillan

Crop futures prices are rising, supported by ideas that supply might turn out tighter than expected. The gains provide welcome optimism to offset the worries generated by all the tariff and trade war talk coming out of the mouth of American president Donald Trump. From Jan. 1 to Feb. 21, Chicago May corn futures and Minneapolis spring wheat futures both rose slightly more than eight per cent.
Smaller canola crop raises price and rationing questions

Dec 11, 2024 | producer.com | D'arce McMillan

A disappointing canola harvest is in the bin, judging by the November Statistics Canada crop survey released last week, setting up a potential supply squeeze later this crop year. However, with the Chinese anti-dumping investigation hanging over the market as well as the many worries associated with the incoming Trump administration, it is impossible to make predictions. The November production report issued Dec.
Talking turkey about the actual cost of a holiday meal

Dec 4, 2024 | producer.com | D'arce McMillan

A recent news story about the cost of an American Thanksgiving meal that triggered a social media response was interesting in several ways. It highlighted the public’s continuing concern with food inflation as well as its misunderstanding of how news operations work. Granted, this was a social media squall, not a storm, but it was big enough to trend for a while on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Tariff war might again roil oilseed markets

Nov 27, 2024 | producer.com | D'arce McMillan

A report commissioned by the American Soybean Association and the U.S. National Corn Growers Association warns that a new trade war between the United States and China would cost American farmers while benefiting producers in Brazil and Argentina. Read Also Grim outlook for new crop SASKATOON — Analysts speaking at a recent GrainFox market outlook webinar must have left their rose-coloured glasses in the drawer… See Sean Pratt’s story on the report here.
U.S. policy shifts join weather, economics as market movers

Nov 20, 2024 | producer.com | D'arce McMillan

Crop market forecasting for the coming months has become more complicated as questions about American policy direction are added to the usual issues about weather and economic developments. Read Also Can Singapore be a plant protein partner? WINNIPEG — Canada may need a partner in southeast Asia to tap into booming demand for food, ingredients and protein… Donald Trump is busy selecting loyalists for his cabinet.
Central banks ponder how fast to reduce interest rates

Oct 23, 2024 | producer.com | D'arce McMillan

The latest inflation and employment reports show the Canadian economy could be cooling too fast, prompting several prominent economists to encourage the Bank of Canada to aggressively cut interest rates. Read AlsoBank of Canada must cut interest rates more aggressivelyBy the time you are reading this, the Bank of Canada will likely have announced a 25 basis point (0.25…The bank met this week and was expected to cut its key rate by at least 25 basis points or more.
Prices of crops, oil bounce back from late summer lows

Oct 15, 2024 | producer.com | D'arce McMillan

Weather issues and international tensions are lifting prices of several commodities off lows hit in late August and early September. Read AlsoBooming Chinese demand drives canola exportsThe Canadian grain and oilseed sector continues to have an overreliance on Chinese exports, which was illustrated by the Canadian…Wheat production estimates and forecasts are down because of weather challenges in Russia, Argentina and elsewhere, helping to lift wheat futures.
Booming canola exports, domestic use offset low prices

Oct 2, 2024 | producer.com | D'arce McMillan

The weakest canola price since 2020 appears to be helping to stoke domestic and export demand for the oilseed. Read AlsoWP reporter has seen major changes in the last 30 yearsGrain farming is radically different from the way it was in November 1994 when I started reporting for this newspaper.…The crop year is young, but canola exports and domestic use are so far running at a record pace. Exports stand at 1.676 million tonnes over the first seven weeks of the crop year to Sept. 22.
Record S. American soy forecast assumes drought ends

Sep 25, 2024 | producer.com | D'arce McMillan

Market attention will soon turn to South America, where seeding has begun on the next soybean crop, which major forecasters expect will set a new record if the current soil moisture deficit is fixed by improved rain. Read AlsoProducers will suffer during Canada’s productivity crisisCanada’s farmers will suffer if the country’s productivity crisis continues or even worsens.