Food Business News - July 2, 2013 - 93

Market commentary for one-week period ended June 28, 2013

Bakery Flour
Bookings of bakery flour were limited
last week. Prices of flour milled from hard
red winter wheat and soft red winter wheat
dropped, but spring grade prices were little
changed. While wide losses were posted
in Kansas City and Chicago wheat futures,
declines in Minneapolis were modest in
comparison, and a stronger cash spring
wheat basis kept spring grades flour pricing
on a mostly even keel.
Bakers mostly held to the sidelines last
week ahead of the release on Friday of the
U.S. Department of Agriculture’s annual
Acreage and quarterly Grain Stocks reports.
Flour buyers were expected to digest the
implications of the reports before moving
forward on significant purchasing decisions.
The recent sluggish pace of flour booking
has meant many, if not most, bakers will
soon have to step forward to extend
contract balances. The inclination was to
see how far wheat futures prices may fall
under the pressure of harvest. Bakers also
hoped the expanding winter wheat harvest
would buckle historically strong hard red
winter and soft red winter wheat cash
premiums.
Lower prices may be ahead but mills
cautioned that, should everyone hold back
until they think the market has bottomed
and then steps forward, the resulting flurry
in activity may push prices higher again.
Baker commitments to July-September
flour contracts increased slightly to
55% to 60%. The commitments included
both finished contracts and component

Bakery ﬂour

Family Flour
Sales of national and regional brands
of family flour were seasonally slow last
week. Carlot list prices were unchanged.
Sales and shipments remained in the
doldrums, which were expected to prevail
until the start of the new school year and
the approach of the fall baking season.
Manufacturers
and
buyers
took
advantage of the annual lull in activity to
make plans for the fall
In the market for private label flour, most
users earlier contracted for their needs
through July and even August. But many
held back to await market developments
during the growing season in the hope for
lower prices in the fall. FBN

Semolina
Bookings of semolina, granulars and durum
flour were limited last week. Prices declined.
The price of choice milling hard amber
durum quoted as a delivered Chicago/
beyond value was $10.50 a bu, down 35c
from a week earlier. The Minneapolis price
was $10.20 a bu.
One miller observed there was no carry in
the cash durum market through December.

But this didn’t lure pasta manufacturers
into extending contract balances into
the fourth quarter. Their view seemed to
be upside price risk was limited despite
a smaller planted area in North Dakota
than producers intended. This was largely
because of the availability of Canadian
supply in the near term and prospects for a
large 2013 Canadian crop.
Pasta manufacturers earlier booked
nearly all of their needs through September,
and fourth-quarter coverage remained lean.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture
on June 28, in its annual Acreage report,
estimated area planted to durum across
the United States for harvest this year at
1,538,000 acres, down 213,000 acres from
producers’ intentions reported in March
and down 585,000 acres from 2,123,000
acres in 2012. North Dakota, where a wet
spring and early summer prevented many
intended acres from being seeded, was
estimated to have a durum area of 850,000
acres, down 250,000 acres from March
intentions and down 490,000 acres from
1,340,000 acres in 2012.
At the same time, Statistics Canada last
week indicated Canadian growers planted
4,880,000 acres to durum this spring, up 4%
from 4,680,000 acres in 2012 and up 22%
from 4,011,000 acres in 2011. FBN

Bakers standard, Kansas City
Bulk, f.o.b. car, $ per cwt
$23.00
$21.00
$19.00

No. 1 hard amber durum

Bulk, f.o.b. car, $ per cwt

— Change from — Year
June 28 June 21 June 14 ago

Kansas City
Bakers short patent
Bakers standard patent
Second clear
Third clear
Minneapolis
Spring short patent
Spring standard patent
High gluten
Whole wheat
Specialty whole wheat
Fancy spring clear
First spring clear
Rye, white
Chicago
Cracker
Fancy cake
New York
Winter/spring blend
Spring standard patent
High gluten
Fancy cake
Rye, white
Los Angeles
Bakers standard patent
Pastry

ownership for the period. Most contracts
remained uncompleted.
Mill grind last week was 5½ to six days
in the Southwest, 6½ days in the Upper
Midwest, six days in the Central states, five
days in the Southeast and three to six days
in the Northeast. FBN

19.00
18.90
14.00
…

-0.90 -0.40
-0.90 -0.40
—
—
...
...

19.75
19.65
14.00
…

$17.00

Track, Minneapolis
— Change from — Year
$ per bu
June 28 June 21 June 14 ago
Choice milling 13% 10.20
-.35
-.60
9.45
cents per bu
Amber discount
10.00
—
—
10.00
Durum discount 10@40
—
—
10@40
Pufﬁng premium
0
—
—
0

$15.00
J

S

D
Previous Year

Current Year

Spring standard, Minneapolis
Bulk, f.o.b. car, $ per cwt
$26.00

Semolina
19.35
19.25
22.25
19.25
19.60
19.10
19.00
22.40

—
—
—
—
—
—
—
—

-0.05
-0.05
-0.05
-0.05
-0.05
-0.05
-0.05
-0.10

19.70
19.60
22.60
19.60
19.95
19.45
19.35
20.65

15.35
16.85

-1.15
-1.15

-0.65
-0.65

17.35
18.85

Bulk, f.o.b. Minneapolis, $ per cwt
— Change from —
June 28 June 21 June 14
Semolina
24.25
-.85
-1.60
Granulars
24.05
-.85
-1.60
Flour
23.95
-.85
-1.60
First clear
17.50
—
—
Second clear 13.00
—
—
Semolina - N.Y. 26.95
-.85
-1.60

$23.00

Year
ago
22.50
22.30
22.20
17.50
13.00
25.20

Nationally advertised family ﬂour

$20.00
$17.00
J

S

D

M

Previous Year

Current Year

Cracker ﬂour, Chicago
Bulk, f.o.b. car, $ per cwt

$22.00

Dollars
21.40
22.15
25.15
18.85
24.90

-0.90
-0.20
-0.20
-1.15
—

-0.40
-0.30
-0.30
-0.65
-0.10

22.15
22.55
25.55
20.85
23.15

24.90
23.95

-0.90
-0.90

-0.40
-0.40

23.00
23.50

June 28
Family patent, 2-25s papers 24.12
4-10s
n.a.
8-5s
18.52
18-2s
20.64
Self-rising
n.a.

$20.00

Year ago
24.12
n.a.
18.62
20.64
n.a.

$18.00
$16.00
$14.00
$12.00
J

S

D
Previous Year

July 2, 2013

M

M
Current Year

FOODBUSINESS NEWS

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Food Business News - July 2, 2013

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