WINNIPEG: ICE Canada canola futures ended mostly lower on Monday, giving back earlier gains that included the highest nearby price since mid-2008.
* Speculator buying, triggered by stronger soybean prices, pushed nearby May and July contracts to contract highs early.
* Farmer selling at country elevators led to commercial hedge pressure later, and profit-taking also weighed on late trading - trader.
* May canola lost $1.70 to $620.80 per tonne on volume of 11,527 contracts. Touched high earlier of $630, the highest price on a nearby continuous chart since July 2008.
* July canola shed $1.80 to $618.10 per tonne on volume of 7,848 contracts.
* May-July spread traded 5,485 times, settling at a May premium of $2.70. July-November spread narrowed to a July premium of $40.10, trading 2,834 times.
* Chicago May soybeans gained 18 US cents to US$14.21 per bushel, on follow-through buying from Friday's government estimate of lower-than-expected soybean plantings this year. May soyoil rose 1.06 cent to 56.16 US cents per lb.
* MATIF May rapeseed added 1.2 percent.
* The Canadian dollar was trading at $0.9910 against the US dollar, or US$1.0091, at 1:16 p.m. CDT (1816 GMT), up slightly from Friday's close at $0.9975 versus the US dollar, or US$1.0025.
* US light crude oil gained 2.2 percent at $105.23 per barrel.
* Exporters sell 120,000 tonnes of US soybeans to China.
* The US Department of Agriculture on Friday forecast intended soy plantings at 73.902 million acres (29.91 million hectares), below the average analyst estimate of 75.393 million acres.