Reuters Daily Agriculture Brief 290409

Financial Crisis - 0755 GMT

- New swine flu infections found around the world; governments tell people to avoid Mexico where the death toll stood at 159
- Inflation rates "very low" in the euro zone but should rise towards the end of the year says Trichet in newspaper interview
- U.S. Fed expected to make statement around 1815 GMT after two-day policy meeting. First quarter U.S. GDP due at 1230 GMT
- The eurozone's largest bank Santander posts a 5 pct fall in first quarter net profit
- ArcelorMittal disappoints, reports slightly worse-than-expected Q1 results
- Australia's fourth largest lender, ANZ reports a bigger-than-expected 43 percent drop in half-year cash profit
- South Korea posted a record current account surplus for March as exports rose for second consecutive month
- Ireland's economy is expected to shrink by 11.6 percent between 2008 and 2010 - research body

GRAINS:

U.S. soy recovers after swine flu sell-off
PARIS/SYDNEY, April 29 (Reuters) - U.S. soybean futures rebounded as traders took the view that selling earlier in the week had been overdone, while corn and wheat extended gains on concerns about the slow pace of U.S. planting.
"After the big sell-off, there's some buying back-in while there's still sowing delays in the United States that's helping to support prices," said Pat Cogswell, a trader at MF Global Australia.

EDIBLE OIL/OILSEEDS:

Palm claws back some losses from flu sell-off
KUALA LUMPUR, April 29 (Reuters) - Malaysian crude palm oil futures gained 1 percent, bouncing off one-week lows earlier in the session, as investors shifted focus from swine flu to expectations of higher demand.
"Perhaps we are getting back to our own fundamentals of higher demand and tight stocks. We had a healthy correction and now its time to jump back in," one dealer from a local commodities broker said.

China cancelling soy cargoes as margins fall-trade
BEIJING/SINGAPORE, April 29 (Reuters) - Chinese soybean buyers have cancelled up to five U.S. soybean cargoes in the past few days because plentiful imports are squeezing crushing margins, traders said on Wednesday.
"We heard some 4-5 cargoes for June, July and August shipment were cancelled. Crushing margins have fallen a lot recently," said one Beijing-based trading manager with an international trading house.

BEYOND THE HEADLINES:

China soybean glut to worsen, may slow imports
SINGAPORE/BEIJING, April 29 (Reuters) - China's relentless soybean imports have caused an oversupply in the domestic market and the situation may worsen in the months ahead as plentiful shipments are in the pipeline.
With domestic crush margins softening, Chinese importers have cancelled up to five cargoes and signed no orders for new purchases this week, traders have said.

Economic woes may damage moves to slow deforestation
KUALA LUMPUR/JAKARTA, April 29 (Reuters) - Growing economic pain may increasingly force consumers to turn to palm oil, one of the cheapest cooking oils, a move that could scupper nascent plans to slow deforestation in Southeast Asia.
With rising output in Indonesia, the world's biggest palm oil producer and home to the eighth largest expanse of forests, and tight land supplies in Malaysia, the world's second largest supplier, conservation's economics look even less appealing.

North American pork hit with bans on flu scare
WASHINGTON, April 28 (Reuters) - North American pork products were hit with bans in the wake of an outbreak of a new swine flu strain, even though health officials said consumers could not contract the virus by eating pork.
The virus has killed about 150 people in Mexico, and has made 65 people ill in several U.S. states. It also has spread to Canada, Europe, the Middle East and New Zealand.