The growing season for U.S. crops is right around the corner and several factors, fundamentally, technically and seasonally are lining up to suggest that the time to buy soybean futures and soybean meal futures may be right around the corner. Last year’s drought placed heavy demands on Brazilian and Argentine crops as well as the beans left over in the bins. The tight supplies have left us with a stock to usage ratio of less than 5%. In fact, the USDA recently stated that this year’s U.S. stock to usage ratio of 4.3% is the lowest since 1965. Typically any ratio below 10% is bullish for U.S. beans. Meanwhile, the global stock to usage ratio is the lowest since 1996.
Demand for soybeans also continues to increase. Chinese hog farming represents a large portion of the soybean demand through their use of soybean meal as feed. The USDA expects that China’s hog production may reach more than 60% of the world’s total in 2013. In fact, Chinese soybean imports have increased six-fold since 2000 to meet the growing demands of their own domestic usage. U.S. exports are already 25% above last year’s levels and currently stand at 93% of the USDA’s export expectations of the U.S. crop in 2013 for the marketing year ending this August. China’s imports have led the way and are up 13% year over year.
Seasonally, soybeans tend to sell off and make an early spring low sometime in February. This is followed immediately by a rally into Memorial Day as planting related weather concerns force the market back and forth between, “too dry” or “too wet.” The late February low also coincides with the South American harvest, which is currently in full swing. The South American harvest sell off is similar to the September harvest sell off we get here in the U.S.
The final piece of seasonal analysis is the analysis of the seasons themselves. Last year’s drought has not been sufficiently squelched by winter snows. Soil moisture in the leading soybean producing states is running dangerously low. Nine of the most productive states are sitting at 20% of normal soil moisture. This is the mirror image of last spring when only 20% of the same area was below normal moisture levels. The world cannot afford a drought in the U.S. in 2013.
Moving to the more technical nature of the market the commercial traders have been net buyers of beans since November. Their net position has doubled and they’ve only been net sellers twice in the last 15 weeks. Commercial traders have been early buyers in each of the last three years. Each of the last three years has given us an early rally, as well. Deeper research reveals the importance of this. Commercial traders have come into the year on a positive note one third of the time over the last 30 years. Soybeans have had meaningful early rallies in seven out of the ten years that commercial traders have started the year on a bullish note.
The USDA has raised its 2013 forecast to a range of $13.55 – $15.05 per bushel. These estimates are based on the November soybean futures, which will be this year’s planted crop. November soybeans are currently trading at $12.70 per bushel. The November beans have formed a triple bottom on the daily chart near $12.55. This would imply the market wants to trade lower and see what happens under the $12.50 area. Technically a test or, penetration of $12 would provide an ideal bottom to start looking at the buy side for the November soybean futures contract. Breaking the $12.50 level would accomplish two things. First, it would flush early and weak buyers out of the market and allow the positions to reset themselves. Secondly, it would create an oversold condition that, combined with positive commercial trader momentum could be used as a springboard to get long on the bounce higher.
There are far too many bullish global factors to ignore the buy side of soybeans in 2013. The fundamental factors of growing global demand in the face of record low current inventories will magnify any weather related issues. The soybean market typically overshoots its targets and suggested price ranges. Therefore, buying soybeans $1.50 below the bottom of the USDA’s price targets may very well net a profit in excess of the USDA’s high side of their forecast at $15.05.
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