UPDATE 2-UN food aid funds growing, but needs growing too

Reuters: [2008-05-06 23:56:00]

(Recasts, adds additional needs, U.S. funding; adds byline)

By Missy Ryan

WASHINGTON, May 6 (Reuters) - The World Food Program, facing an unprecedented surge in the price of food it buys for the world's hungry, has secured about 60 percent of the extra funds it needs to cover planned aid donations this year, the head of the United Nations agency said on Tuesday.

"We put out an extra appeal for $755 million and we're about 60 percent of the way there," WFP Executive Director Josette Sheeran said during a speech at a Washington think tank.

But the agency said it already has had to cut some of the food rations it provides, and its $755-million gap does not include new, emerging hunger needs that will require an additional $418 million to $430 million this year.

Sheeran, a former Bush administration official, said the world's food delivery system was "groaning under the strain of sky-rocketing demand, the soaring cost of inputs, depleted stocks, crop loss due to drought, floods and severe weather."

Higher global prices for basic foodstuffs such as bread, rice and milk may have brought on a crisis that could be the first truly globalized humanitarian emergency, she said.

World leaders are calling for urgent steps to ease the soaring costs, to create a larger cushion of food across harvests, and to diffuse the food panic that has triggered protests across the developing world.

"It is said that a hungry man is an angry man," Sheeran said. Global food prices jumped an annual 43 percent through March, according to the U.S. government.

The trend is believed to be deepening poverty, especially for food-importing nations like Nicaragua, pushing more people into hunger as buying power shrinks for food aid budgets.

Donor nations like Canada, Australia and Britain have stepped up pledges to help WFP cope with soaring costs. The United States, the world's largest food aid donor and WFP's top supporter, last month released 260,000 tonnes of wheat from an emergency crop trust.

Last week, President George W. Bush announced plans, which must be approved by Congress, to spend an additional $770 million on food aid and agriculture development in the fiscal year beginning Oct. 1.

For countries where people spend up to three-quarters of their income on food, experts say time is of the essence.

The Bush administration already has requested $350 million in last-minute food aid funding for this fiscal year, a perennial addition to annual budgeted funds.

On Tuesday, Democratic leaders in the U.S. House of Representatives announced that they would try to add another $500 million for emergency food aid.

Rep. David Obey of Wisconsin, chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, said the money would be attached to a massive Iraq war funding bill that could be debated on the House floor on Thursday.

It was unclear if Bush would veto the spending bill if it contained too much spending that he did not call for.

The Bush administration also is seeking flexibility to buy more food overseas for aid programs, in hopes of making aid dollars go further. (Additional reporting by Richard Cowan; Editing by David Gregorio)

((missy.ryan@thomsonreuters.com; + 202-898-8376; Reuters Messaging: missy.ryan.reuters.com@reuters.net)) Keywords: USA FOODAID/WFP

COMMODITIES-Oil breaks $122; corn at new record too

Reuters: [2008-05-06 23:29:00]

    By Barani Krishnan 
    NEW YORK, May 6 (Reuters) - The bull run in U.S. energy 
markets showed little signs of slowing on Tuesday, with crude, 
gasoline and heating oil all hitting record highs before ending 
off their peaks, fueling a rally in other commodities too. 
    U.S. corn futures hit new peaks as well, leading wheat to a 
higher close. [GRA/] Precious metals such as gold and silver 
rose but modestly. [GOL/] Copper bucked the trend with a lower 
close after Monday's record high in New York. [MET/L] 
    "I think oil is just pulling everything higher and because 
of that, all these commodities have turned around again," said 
Edward Meir, energy and metals analyst at commodities brokerage 
MF Global in New York. 
    Another positive factor was the dollar's weakening for a 
second straight day after being up in two previous sessions on 
speculation that the U.S. Federal Reserve may be ready to stop 
interest rate cuts which began in September. [USD/] 
    "The dollar was giving the bears some hope last week when 
it rallied. That seems to have stalled and we seem to be back 
to the original kind of trading strategy, which is go short the 
dollar and long the commodities," Meir said. 
    Crude <CLc1> on the New York Mercantile Exchange, or NYMEX, 
settled up $1.87 at $121.84 a barrel after touching a record 
$122.73, extending a rally that has doubled prices over the 
past year. [O/R] 
    Analysts attributed the run-up mainly to Iran's refusal to 
accept inspections of its nuclear program which the West fears 
could be linked to weapons. Iran is also the world's fourth 
largest oil exporter. [ID:nL05474341] 
    Nigerian disruptions from militant attacks and a strike 
have also underpinned prices since late April, along with the 
weaker dollar and growing demand from emerging markets like 
China and India. 
    The mounting supply problems and strong demand prompted 
Goldman Sachs to forecast oil could reach $200 a barrel within 
the next two years.[ID:nL06914488] 
    NYMEX heating oil for June ended up 4.70 cents, or 1.42 
percent, at $3.3535 after an intraday record of $3.3712. 
    RBOB gasoline for June, settled up 5.26 cents, or 1.72 
percent, at $3.1055 on NYMEX, after an all-time high of 
$3.1260. 
    U.S. corn surged 3 percent as the pace of seeding in the 
United States, the world's top producer and exporter of the 
grain used in feed and ethanol, was the slowest in a decade. 
    Spring rains across wide swaths of the Midwest grain belt, 
which is home to the bulk of corn grown in the United States, 
have delayed planting. As a rule of thumb, farmers need to seed 
the crop by May 15 to avoid yield loss. 
    Benchmark corn for May delivery <CK8> on the Chicago Board 
of Trade closed up 12-3/4 cents at $5.94-3/4 per bushel. The 
July <CN9> 2009 contract reached a record high of $6.60-3/4 per 
bushel during Tuesday's session before ending up 10 cents at 
$6.49. 
    CBOT wheat for May <WK8> closed up 13-1/2 cents at $8.06 
per bushel. 
    The Reuters-Jefferies CRB index <.CRB>, which tracks 19 
commodity futures, was up 1.13 percent at 418.54. 
 (Editing by Marguerita Choy) 
 ((barani.krishnan@thomsonreuters.com; +1 646 223 6192; Reuters 
Messaging: barani.krishnan.reuters.com@reuters.net)) 
    For the latest news and prices, click on the codes in 
brackets: 
    CBOT grains and oilseed futures 
    <0#W:> <0#C:> <0#S:> <0#SM:> <0#BO:> 
    COMEX gold futures <0#GC:> 
    COMEX copper futures <0#HG:> 
    CME livestock futures <0#LC:> <0#FC:> 
    CME lumber futures <0#LB:> 
    NYBOT softs, cotton and juice futures 
    <0#KC:> <0#SB:> <0#CC:> <0#CT:> <0#OJ:> 
    NYMEX crude oil <0#CL:> 
    Reuters/Jefferies CRB Index <.CRB> 
    NYBOT RJ/CRB futures <0#CR:> <0#CI:> 
    RELATED NEWS AND OTHER TOPICS All commodities news [C] 
    Energy markets news [O] 
    Precious metals news GOL All metals news [MTL] 
    All agriculture news GRO Grains news [GRA] 
    Livestock news LIV Softs news [SOF] 
    Foreign exchange rates [FX=S] 
    SNAPSHOTS of all commodity reports [SNAP/GOL] [SNAP/COF] 
    [SNAP/COT] 
    SPEED GUIDES COMMODS REUTERS 
Keywords: MARKETS COMMODITIES 
    

U.S. Cash Grain - Corn, soybean basis bids mostly steady

Reuters: [2008-05-06 22:46:00]

    CHICAGO, May 6 (Reuters) - Spot basis bids for soybeans and 
corn held steady at most processors and elevators around the 
U.S. Midwest on Tuesday, grain dealers said. 
    * Farmer sales of both commodities were slow on Tuesday. 
    * Most growers were busy planting corn ahead of expected 
rain later in the week. 
    * Some farmers booked very light sales of corn after a 
futures market rally pushed cash prices higher, a dealer in 
northern Ohio said. 
    * Although the soybean basis was mostly steady, bids rose 
by 5 cents per bushel in central Iowa. 
    * A dealer in southern Illinois rolled the soybean bid to 
the Chicago Board of Trade November futures contract <SX8> from 
the July contract <SN8>. Cash prices for soybeans fell by 31 
cents to $12.37 per bushel at that location. 
    * Barge freight rates were steady on the spot market on 
Tuesday. [ID:nN06542496] 
    * On the Mississippi River at St. Louis, barges were bid at 
325 percent of tariff, unchanged from Monday. 
    * Bids for barges were unchanged at 340 percent of tariff 
on the lower Ohio River. 
    * Bids for barges held steady at 375 percent of tariff on 
the Illinois River. 
    * At the Chicago Board of Trade, the May soybean futures 
contract <SK8> fell 8-1/2 cents to $12.64-1/2 per bushel while 
the July contract <SN8> fell 9 cents to $12.77 per bushel. Talk 
of progress between the Argentine government and farmers 
regarding export taxes pressured the market. [ID:nN06504695] 
    * The May corn futures contract <CK8> rose 12-3/4 cents to 
$5.94-3/4 a bushel while the July contract <CN8> ended 12-1/4 
cents higher at $6.06-1/4 a bushel on slow corn seedings and 
forecasts for less-than-ideal planting weather. 
    * The May wheat futures contract <WK8> settled 13-1/2 cents 
higher at $8.06 a bushel and the July contract <WN8> rose 
12-1/2 cents to $8.18 per bushel. 
 
                           Basis           Prev    Cash price 
Chicago, Illinois 
Corn processors        -17   +  N      -17   +  N       5.8925 
Corn elevators         -30   +  K      -30   +  K       5.6475 
Soybean elevators      -23   +  K      -23   +  K      12.4150 
Wheat elevators       -100   +  K     -100   +  K       7.0600 
Wheat processors       -55   +  K      -55   +  K       7.5100 
Decatur IL corn        -20   +  N      -20   +  N       5.8625 
Decatur IL soybeans    +20   +  X      -18   +  N      12.3750 
Burns Harbor IN corn   -45   +  N      -45   +  N       5.6125 
Burns Harbor soy       -25   +  N      -25   +  N      12.5200 
Lafayette IN soy        -5   +  N       -5   +  N      12.7200 
Toledo, Ohio (port) 
Corn                   -24   +  N      -24   +  N       5.8225 
Soybeans               -25   +  N      -25   +  N      12.5200 
SRW wheat (DP)         -70   +  N      -70   +  N       7.4800 
Davenport, Iowa (river) 
Corn                 -49.5   +  N    -49.5   +  N       5.5675 
Soybeans               -68   +  N      -66   +  N      12.0900 
Evansville, Ind (rail) 15-car CSX 
Corn                   -14   +  N      -14   +  N       5.9225 
Cincinnati, Ohio (rail) 3-car 
Corn                   -13   +  N      -13   +  N       5.9325 
Hereford, Texas (rail) 
Corn                   +50   +  N      +50   +  N       6.5625 
Columbus, Ohio (rail) 3-car 
Corn                   -13   +  N      -13   +  N       5.9325 
Morris, Illinois (river) 
Corn                   -39   +  N      -39   +  N       5.6725 
Soybeans             -60.5   +  N    -60.5   +  N      12.1650 
SRW wheat (new crop)   UNQ             UNQ              UNQ 
Kansas City (rail) 
Corn                    -3   +  N       -3   +  N       6.0325 
Blair, Nebraska 
Corn                   -26   +  N      -25   +  N       5.8025 
Council Bluffs, Iowa 
Yellow corn            -36   +  N      -36   +  N       5.7025 
Soybeans               -42   +  N      -42   +  N      12.3500 
Des Moines, Iowa 
Soybeans               -48   +  N      -53   +  N      12.2900 
Sioux City, Iowa 
Soybeans               -50   +  N      -50   +  N      12.2700 
 ------------------------------------------------------------ 
    LINKS: 
    For U.S. forward basis spreadsheets, please click on: 
  <CORN/BASIS>   <SOYA/BASIS>   <WHEAT/BASIS>    <MILO/BASIS> 
 
    * U.S. Midwest cash grain AM               [GRA/M] 
    * U.S. grain barge freight values          [BG/US] 
    * U.S. CIF Gulf Grain                      [GRA/C] 
    * U.S. FOB Gulf Grain                      [GRA/F] 
 ------------------------------------------------------------ 
 (Reporting by Mark Weinraub) 
 ((mark.weinraub@thomsonreuters.com; +1 312 408 8587; Reuters 
Messaging: mark.weinraub.reuters.com@reuters.net)) 
Keywords: MARKETS GRAIN CASH  
    

Argentine soy prices rally as strike fears linger

Reuters: [2008-05-06 22:45:00]

    BUENOS AIRES, May 6 (Reuters) - Argentine soy's closing 
prices and trends on Tuesday: 
    
    * In the main grain port of Rosario, soy closed up at 900 
pesos per tonne ($278), compared with 871 pesos on Monday. 
    * Trade volume in Rosario swelled to a healthy 50,000 
tonnes from just 5,000 tonnes in the previous session. 
    * Traders said buyers were willing to pay 900 pesos per 
tonne, fearing farmers could renew the commercial strike that 
disrupted exports and crushing activity in March. 
    * Negotiations between farm leaders and the government were 
expected to continue on Wednesday. Following Tuesday's meeting, 
farmers said the government was willing to change the export 
tax system that sparked the strike. 
    * Chicago Board of Trade soybean futures closed mixed on 
Tuesday after trading higher for most of the day. 
    * Soy for delivery in June closed up by 30 pesos to 905 
pesos per tonne in Rosario. 
    
  MARKETS          WHEAT            CORN            SUNSEEDS 
  Buenos Aires*    N/A (760.4)    N/A (N/A)         N/A (1100) 
  Quequen          N/A (N/A)      N/A (N/A)         N/A (1110) 
  Rosario          N/A (N/A)  510/515 (498)        1120 (1120) 
  Bahia Blanca     N/A (N/A)      N/A (520)         N/A (1110) 
*Buenos Aires high quality milling wheat: 745/790 (N/A) 
    Source: GRANAR 
    
 ($1 = 3.2325 pesos) 
 (Reporting by Maximilian Heath; Writing by Helen Popper; 
Editing by Christian Wiessner) 
 ((helen.popper@thomsonreuters.com; + 54 11 4318-0655; Reuters 
Messaging: helen.popper.reuters.com@reuters.net)) 
 
For the latest news and prices, click on the items in 
brackets: 
Argentine grain/oilseed prices  <GBRA>-D 
Daily Argentine grain fixings   <RPPA> 
Argentina FOB export prices     <GRAIN/AR01> 
Argentina grain/oilseed exports <GRAT> 
Argentine domestic oilseed/wheat industry <GRAU> 
Argentine MAT futures           <BCC/FUTEX1> 
ROFEX-Rosario Futures Exchange  <ROFEX> 
RELATED NEWS AND OTHER TOPICS: 
Argentine crop progress            [GRA/AR] 
Argentine wheat export commitments [WHE/AR] 
Argentine corn export commitments  [COR/AR] 
All Grains news [GRA] All Grains & Oilseeds news [GRO] 
All commodities news [C] World grain weather updates [GRO-WEA] 
SPEED GUIDES: 
<COMMODS> <GRAIN/SUM> <MEAL/SUM> <CEREAL1> <OILSEED1> 
Reuters Financial Glossary:  http://glossary.reuters.com    
Keywords: MARKETS ARGENTINA/GRAINS 
    

U.S. rice futures end firm after volatile trade

Reuters: [2008-05-06 22:36:00]

CHICAGO, May 6 (Reuters) - U.S. rough rice futures on the Chicago Board of Trade ended firm Tuesday on follow-through technical buying after a volatile session, traders said.

* Thinly traded May <RRK8>, now in delivery, settled 10 cents up at $20.82 per hundredweight. More actively traded July <RRN8> closed 10 cents higher at $21.10 -- after soaring 45 cents earlier in the session to $21.45.

* Prices continue to recover from last week's technical sell-off when prices slid $4 from its record high above $25. But the market was still viewed technically weak, despite the higher trend the past three days, traders said.

* Weaker Thai cash prices were bearish. But there were mixed views among Chicago traders whether the Philippines' recent moves in the cash rice market were bullish or bearish.

* The Philippines, the world's biggest importer of rice, on Monday scrapped a tender for 675,000 tonnes after receiving just one bid, then it set an auction for 163,000 tonnes for the private sector for May 9. [ID:nSP167063]

* An improving planting outlook for the U.S. rice belt weighed on prices.

* Rice planting is lagging due to wet spring in the top rice state of Arkansas.

* USDA reported late Monday that 61 percent of the rice was seeded, vs the seasonal average of 71 percent.

* Overnight, there were 19 May deliveries which were met by a strong stopper. An Iowa Grain customer took all.

For detailed report click on [GRA/]. (Reporting by Christine Stebbins) ((christine.stebbins@thomsonreuters.com; +1 312 408 8720; Reuters Messaging:christine.stebbins.reuters.com@reuters.net)) Keywords: MARKETS CBOT RICE