WINNIPEG, Manitoba--The ICE Futures canola market was lower at Friday's close, as losses in Chicago soyoil weighed on values.

Chart-based selling contributed to the declines, with prices near their lowest levels of the past month.

* May canola traded just above chart support at its 50-day moving average.

* Ongoing uncertainty over the war in the Middle East kept some caution in the agricultural futures. Crude oil saw choppy trade, with the bias lower by the afternoon.

* Large old crop supplies remained a bearish influence overhanging the canola market, although wide crush margins kept end-users showing some demand on a scale-down basis.

* Canada exported 283,500 tonnes of canola during the week ended April 5, which was up 22 per cent from the previous week, reported the Canadian Grain Commission. Crop-year-to- date exports of 5.59 million tonnes compare with 7.18 million tonnes at the same point the previous year.

* There were 67,980 contracts traded on Friday, which compares with Thursday when 71,971 contracts changed hands.

Spreading accounted for 48,142 of the contracts traded.

Settlement prices in Canadian dollars per metric tonne. 


 
           Price      Change 
May       704.20     dn 4.50 
Jul       717.30     dn 4.60 
Nov       718.50     dn 1.20 
Jan       726.00     dn 1.10

Spread trade prices are in Canadian dollars and the volume represents the number of spreads: 


 
Months    Prices                            Volume 
May/Jul   12.80 under to 13.30 under        12,704 
May/Nov   10.80 under to 14.40 under           349 
Jul/Nov   3.00 over to 1.50 under           10,447 
Jul/Jan   5.10 under to 8.70 under              24 
Jul/Mar   11.10 under to 14.30 under             7 
Nov/Jan   7.10 under to 7.50 under             435 
Jan/Mar   5.30 under to 5.70 under              59 
Mar/May   1.90 under to 2.40 under              32 
May/Jul   0.60 under to 1.00 under              14

Source: Commodity News Service Canada, news@marketsfarm.com


(END) Dow Jones Newswires

04-10-26 1557ET