Headlines:
- President Trump met with Canadian Prime minister Trudeau today to discuss NAFTA and the Keystone pipeline
- NOPA Crush report is out Wednesday February 15, at 11:00 am CT
- Black Earth Farming unveils $200m sell-out to Russian buyer
Black Earth Farming revealed it had agreed, in essence, a $200m takeover by a Russia’s Kukura family in the most high profile of a series of retreats by foreign investors from the Black Sea agricultural market. Stockholm-listed Black Earth Farming, one of the biggest foreign-controlled farming groups in Russia, said it had agreed a sale of its operating companies to Volgo-DonSelkhozInvest, owned by the Kukura family, which is best known for its links to oil and gas giant Lukoil. The sale, valued at $200m including debt, is aimed to be followed “as soon as practically possible” with the liquidation of Black Earth Farming, and the distribution of deal proceeds to shareholders, who are expected to receive SEK7.2-7.5 per Swedish depository receipt. That offers a premium of a modest 7.5-11.9% to the share price as of Friday’s close, but “corresponds to a premium of between 97-105% compared to the volume weighted average trading price for the three months” ahead of an announcement in August that it was in talks with Russian investors.
Summary:
Wheat futures extended their gains to multi-month high. Wheat prices were softer during the overnight session but a lack of producer selling in the US (because of new optimism) and newly discovered Managed Money appetite helped extend the last week’s rally. Soybean futures finished down on the day but only after struggling back and forth all day between being positive and negative. Weather condition in South American made it challenging for it to find solid footing today. The potential for oilseed fund demand is alive and well but at the same time there is reasonable uncertainty over weather conditions in Argentina. Corn was marginally positive for its close adding 0.75 cents to its gains from last week.
Odds are that prices may go flat after this week. We have had a very good run the past couple of weeks and the tail end of last week and perhaps this week may end up being the culmination of the near term move for these markets before they reset.
