Better PRO news

The price slide in Canadian Wheat Board grains has halted in the latest Pool Return Outlook. In fact, wheat values are up by $1 to $10 a tonne and feed barley values are up by $7 a tonne. Durum and malting barley are unchanged from last month. No. 1 spring wheat with 14.5 per cent protein is up by $8 a tonne, while No. 1 with 13.5 protein is up by $4 a tonne. Wheat with 12.5 protein is up only $3, so the protein spreads have increased. The average Saskatchewan price of 12.5 wheat is expected to be $4.78 a bushel. Spring wheat with 13.5 protein is pegged at $5.19 a bushel – a protein premium of 41 cents. The expected price of wheat with 14.5 per cent protein is 5.79 a bushel, which is 60 cents a bushel for that one per cent of protein. In comparison, the protein premiums in durum are much smaller. The PRO on No. 1 durum with 13 per cent protein is $4.40 a bushel. No. 1 durum with 14.5 per cent protein is only $4.70 a bushel. That’s only 30 cents for 1.5 per cent protein. The $7 a tonne increase in feed barley is not going to be enough to attract much into the export market. The PRO is only $1.87 a bushel. Even though the domestic feed barley price has dropped, it’s still a lot higher than the PRO. I’m Kevin Hursh.