where's the arbritrage

[sawfly]

what was everyone saying a couple of years ago.
co.s bidding up each other to get our grain .
the brave new post CWB world.

not that this would not have happened
under the board. but they would have caught the blame.(right Tom)

we have gotten lazy and foolish.
believing their BS

fools to think a private corporate transportation monopoly . cares if we can get to market.

great demand for your transportation product, railroad cuts supply and increases per unit profit.
(smarter than what the farmer would do)

same with the grain co.s.. they are competing for our business .
ya right , look at basis

just like the chem co.s.
we can have 5 manufacturers selling the same chemical , yet we pay the highest price in the world.

farmers are the only true competitors in the bunch.

what is there to stop any/all of them from extracting every last dime from your pocket. nothing

there are only 2 ways to prevent it.
either get in the business yourself.

or get the govt. to legislate a real
competitive market in those sectors.

( what do you think the odds of that are with our bought and paid for politicians )

John Lennon said it best.
"still look like f---ing peasants to me"

[parsley]

Farmers have the numbers to make a real
difference, sawfly. Looking to government, air
corporations, to build out pillars FOR us never
works. We have to build our own pillars, to keep
us standing, no matter which govt is voted in, and
no matter which corporation fails or bullies.

Do you believe Western farmers really can work
together? I do. or I wouldn't waste my one on
AV. Pars

[bgmb]

The arbitrage is happening. There are deals out there to be had on spring wheat. You can load producer cars for 20 cents under Minneapolis local basis is about 1.50 if thats not arbitrage then I don't know what is.

[ado089]

Bgmb, why do we have to settle for US
price less freight? Why dont we just get
the US price? It's more or less the same
distance to port. Someone's getting a
deal but I don't think it's you and I.

[bucket]

Is that MPLS cash price or off march futures?

Big difference in whether its a deal or not?

[ado089]

Sawfly, bringing up the CWB is probably
one of the most unconstructive things we
can do in this situation. It's gone time
to move on. A constructive conversation
may revolve around farmers coming
together to buy a large portion, if not
all of the new CWB. Pooling the purchase
price was kind of silly but having grain
coop that operates in the interest of
farmers and returns profits to farmers
as a dividend makes tons of sense.
That's part of the US model we don't
have here to wield as an equalizer.

[bucket]

Basis in North dakota is only minus 25 cents off march futures.

Here is my take on all of this.

Grain companies built high throughput elevators to move grain for farmers at a reasonable cost and some profit.

It was always said that grain companies make their money through elevation and rarely speculate on the market. You sign a contract, they hedge it, and charge you to put it in a car. ALL paid for by farmer's money.

Railways were the most efficient way of moving grain to the coast. They got their way to lessen the number of pickup points by promoting 112 car unit trains.

Now I am being told to either haul my grain past 12 canadian high throughput elevators and 2 canadian railways to get a better price in the states that has got the grain no closer to the coast.

Its the same ****ing distance from mid point North Dakota to the coast as mid point saskatchewan to the coast!! Look it up.

OR I can do the work myself and wear out an auger, and **** around at a siding loading a couple producer cars less than 15 miles away from an elevator that all i had to do was open the slides. And it took as much time to spot those 2 cars as 112 three miles down the road.

I am not shitting on anyone's ideas here but realize this - THE CNADIAN GRAIN HANDLING SYSTEM IS BROKEN.

And its broke bad. Finding other solutions is great, it lets both the grain handlers and the railways off the hook because farmers solved their problems with their own money.

I remember all the conservatives talking about how the price will be the same on both sides of the border, when the cwb was gone (i supported that - my hand is up). Ask the people that said that to explain why it isn't. David Anderson can't answer that question as to what happened, and doesn't want to look at the 5 W's as to what went wrong. I think he knows but his masters won't let him do anything about it. Same with the rest of the conservatives, they can't be bothered to return calls now, or explain the problems. Well, they don't understand the problems.

If it makes sense to load producer cars 15 miles from a high throughput elevator, or truck grain to the states. then it really is a bizzarro world I live in.

[Hamloc]

Agree with you 100% bucket! The question to ask
is why does the american rail system out perform
the canadian system. Is there more competition?
In canada our ability to produce grain has moved
forwards our ability to deliver it has gone
backwards!!

[wd9]

Excellent summary bucket. ****ing
excellent!!!!

The only way you can ever change a problem
is to properly identify it.

[parsley]

"12 Nov 2013
U.S.-based major railroads’ profit growth surged
back in the third quarter, as resilient pricing and
increased operational efficiencies overcame a 2.8
percent drop in total volume hauled compared to
the same period last year."