Headlines
China tariffs on soybeans sink grains in the overnight. Nov Soybeans fell as low as $9.97 following tariff announcement. Exporters sell 129,000 metric tons of Soybeans for delivery to China during the 2018/2019 marketing year.-USDA Exporters sell 325,000 metric tons of Soybeans for delivery to unknown destinations of which 130,000 MT is for 2017/2018 delivery and 195,000 MT is for 2018/2019 delivery.-USDA
China tariffs announced on U.S soybeans
China announced 25 percent tariffs on 105 U.S. products including soybeans, frozen beef and cotton. The list of tariffs also included signature U.S. exports such as Jack Daniels whiskey, Ford automobiles, Tesla electric cars and Gulfstream Jets. China's list of tariffs is a direct response to the Trump administration's plans to add tariffs to $50 billion in Chinese goods announced on Tuesday. China’s counter-measures were announced only 11 hours following. China's rapid response caught many off guard. Analysts were expecting U.S soybeans to stay off limits in the trade dispute because of China’s massive demand for the oilseed. Traders believe China may still have to purchase U.S. soybeans if there is any disruption in South American supplies. The effective date for China’s of these tariffs will be announced at a later time. China shipped around 33 million metric tons of U.S. soybeans last year and replacing that amount of soybeans will not be easy.
EPA grants major refiner bio-fuels exemption
On Tuesday, the EPA granted three of Andeavor’s smaller refineries with a “hardship” exemption from the bio-fuels regulation. Hardship waiver has been typically reserved for small refinery operations in financial trouble. This is the first example of the EPA granting a large profitable refinery with a waiver from the U.S. Renewable Fuels Standard. This also raises the question as to whether other large refineries will also seek such waivers. Andeavor is on of the nation's largest oil refining companies.
The risk of trading futures, hedging, and speculating can be substantial. Grain Hedge is a Branch of Foremost Trading LLC (NFA ID: 0307930)
