March 14, 2005

US' NOPA report on soy crush for February expected to drop to 127.3 million bushels

Soybean crush rates for February in the National Oilseed Processors Association's, or NOPA's, monthly soybean crush report are expected to drop about 14 million bushels to an estimated 127.3 million bushels due to fewer crushing days in February and thin soybean supplies through the first half of the month, according to a survey of industry analysts.

NOPA's report on the February soybean crush is scheduled to be released Monday at 7:30 a.m. CST (1330 GMT).

Estimates for the report ranged from as low as 126.2 million bushels to as high as 128.5 million bushels. In the previous report, crush for the month of January was measured at 141.4 million bushels.

Industry analysts said poor crushing margins to begin the month due to limited supplies, a shorter number of crushing days in February and seasonal slowdowns served as the catalysts for the modest reduction in the crush from January.

Tight soybean supplies early in the month pressured margins, but a big rally in soybeans managed to get supplies moving in the last 10 days of the month to help boost crushing activity, said Dan Cekander, analyst with Fimat Futures in Chicago.

Dan Basse, president of AgResource in Chicago, said crushing seasonally cuts back in February, with domestic activity a driver of demand as consumers gear up for the availability of fresh supplies out of Argentina and Brazil in the spring.