Milling & Baking News - November 18, 2003 - 32

I N G R E D I E N T

W E E K

cember for less than 2 p.p.m. vomitoxin
and minimum 300 falling number. The
mill basis in Chicago was steady at 30c
over December. Toledo mill bids held at
3c under Chicago December; December
bids were Chicago December price. Elevator bids were 11c under December, deferred pricing only. The Cincinnati mill
basis was unchanged at 10c under December. Elevator bids were 15c under December, deferred pricing only. New crop
Michigan white wheat with 1 p.p.m.
vomitoxin or less was bid at December
price, with offers 15@25c higher.
Winter wheat planting across the Central states was nearly completed.
Crop condition ratings were a mixed
bag. Rated good to excellent on Nov. 9
was 74% of wheat in Missouri (78% the
previous week), 83% in Illinois (74%),
78% in Indiana (78%), 76% in Ohio (72%)
and 77% in Michigan (58%).
DURUM. The price of choice milling
hard amber durum at Minneapolis advanced 5c a bu, to $4.95@5. The rise was
in shallow sympathy with the rapidly escalating flat prices of spring wheat. Demand for spot durum was only tepid,
though. Durum mill grind ranged from
4½ to 5½ days.
With the domestic durum market calm
and supplies adequate, there was little
pressure to import Canadian supplies. MBN

Millfeed
A mostly stronger market prevailed in
millfeed last week. Some trading occurred

at higher levels at midweek, but overall
activity was fairly light. November shipment in Kansas City advanced strongly,
up $7 in the week. Upper Midwest pricing moved up $1. In contrast, Buffalo and
adjacent eastern markets declined $4.
California markets advanced $1, while the
Pacific Northwest was $2 stronger.
The week started with price pressure
carried over from the previous week in
all areas except the West coast. On Monday, Kansas City November dropped $2,
and Eastern markets dropped as much as
$4. Markets stabilized Tuesday and began to show strength, although trading
remained light.
But when corn futures prices rallied at
midweek in the wake of revised U.S.D.A.
supply-demand projections, strength returned to the millfeed market. Kansas
City jumped $5 on Wednsday, while Minneapolis, Chicago and Eastern markets
gained $2. By Thursday the upward momentum was easing, but prices were still
strong. There was a brief flurry of trading
in Kansas City and the Central states
early Thursday before stronger millfeed
prices prompted buyers to pull out. Friday was typically quiet.
Some
merchandisers
predicted
millfeed prices would remain strong but
not move much higher as Midwest and
Central states feed mixers began pulling
millfeed out of some formulas.
West coast supplies remained somewhat tight as the result of unscheduled
downtime at a couple of Southern California mills. Millfeed supplies in other

Bulk Middlings

30-day shipment, Kansas City, $ per ton

30-day shipment, Chicago West, $ per ton

areas were generally adequate.
Spot wheat germ prices held steady.
Bulk middlings at $85 a ton in Kansas
City and $70 in Minneapolis compared
with yellow corn at $89 K.C., and sorghum at $89. Corn gluten feed was up $8
at $82 a ton. Dehydrated alfalfa was
steady at $119. MBN

Semolina
Bookings of semolina, granulars and
durum flour last week were limited.
Prices inched higher.
Pasta makers' coverage of their semolina needs was solid through December.
And January-March coverage was pretty
extensive, so there was little activity and
no sense of urgency in the marketplace.
The price of choice milling hard amber
durum in Minneapolis moved up 5c a bu,
to $4.95@5. But durum mills were comfortable with pipelines that were adequate to sustain a modest grind of 4½ to
5½ days. MBN

Family Flour
Sales of national and regional brands
of family flour were seasonally brisk last
week. Carlot list prices were unchanged.
With Thanksgiving but a couple of
weeks ahead, manufacturers were pressed
to keep up with orders. There were reports of fairly aggressive price discounting to stimulate sales and secure market
share in several markets. Still, recent advances in wheat prices could discourage
deep discounts later in the season. Also,
financial difficulties encountered by one
major manufacturer diminished its ability to match more bold trade activation
programs of its principal rivals. While
some wider discounts have been offered
in several key markets, the most common
promotional price at the grocer level
seemed to hold at about 99c per 5-lb bag.
Strikes and lockout of grocery workers
in Southern California and certain locations in the Central states were thought to
have reduced volume somewhat in those
markets. MBN

Bakery Shortening

Bulk Middlings

Nationally Advertised Family Flour

Nov. 14 close, $ per ton, for following shipping periods
November December Jan.-March
Kansas City
86 @ 90 92 @ 96 88 @ 92
Chicago West
85 @ 92 91 @ 97 89 @ 92
Buffalo
80 @ 85 82 @ 88 74 @ 78
South. California 92 @ 96 92 @ 96 91 @ 96
North. California 92 @ 96 92 @ 96 91 @ 96
Pacific Northwest 92 @ 97 92 @ 97 90 @ 97

Dollars

California and Pacific Northwest prices, delivered rail

36 / Milling & Baking News, November 18, 2003

Nov. 14
Year ago
April-June
12.16
11.33@11.36
70 @ 74 8-5s
74 @ 79
60 @ 66 Semolina
75 @ 79
75 @ 79 f.o.b. Minneapolis, $ per cwt
Week's
Year
85 @ 92
Nov. 14
change
ago
12.95 @ 130.50 +.15
15.65@ 15.75

Bookings of bakery shortening were
limited last week. Price changes were
mixed. Soybean oil prices advanced, with
commodities that typically gauge their
value in relation to soybean oil in tow.
Tropical oils registered mixed changes.
Soybean oil futures prices rallied following the setbacks of the previous week.
The price strength kept booking interest
pretty much restricted to filling in gaps in
November-December coverage. Price
weakness the previous week had encouraged an expansion in bookings in January-March. But that activity was shut off
last week. The U.S. Department of Agribakingbusiness.com / world-grain.com

http://www.bakingbusiness.com http://www.world-grain.com

Milling & Baking News - November 18, 2003

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