GRAINS:
July corn closed up 2 cents and December corn was down 2 1/4 cents. July soybeans closed up 4 3/4 cents and November soybeans were up 3 cents. July KC wheat closed down 1/2 cents, July Chicago wheat was down 4 3/4 cents, July MIAX Minneapolis wheat was down 4 cents.
Row crop markets were mixed Thursday with old crop corn and soybean futures able to extend their weekly price rallies, while new crop corn futures slipped following an impressive three-day rally. Wheat prices were lower across the board after hitting technical resistance by mid-week as traders paused short covering efforts likely to reassess current conditions. Outside markets were mixed to slightly negative influence on ag markets for Thursday, a stronger U.S. dollar and generally weaker energy markets. In other news, the U.S. House of Representatives just narrowly passed President Trump’s “Big, Beautiful Bill,” which will now move onto the Senate.
LIVESTOCK:
The live cattle complex is trading with more vigor today as traders are pleased to see the note of the strong sales in the North yesterday afternoon. It was assumed that fed cash cattle prices would trade steady at best this week as packers were able to build up some supply last week and because next week’s schedule will be limited because of the long holiday weekend. Wednesday afternoon a light movement of dressed sales ranged anywhere from $358 to $370, but mostly at $360 which is $2.00 higher than last week’s weighted average. The bullish surprise has helped reignite some bullishness throughout the futures complex as traders were merely trading the complex steady before seeing the trade develop. Still no sizeable sales have developed in the Southern plains.
With the added support of strong sales in the fed cash cattle market, and upon seeing the live cattle contracts trading higher, the feeder cattle complex followed suit as its contracts traded significantly higher as well. So long as the support remains ample from the live cattle/fed cash cattle market, the feeder cattle complex should be able to maintain its higher trend.
Surprisingly, the lean hog complex isn’t delighted with the fact that the morning’s export report was favorable and that midday pork cutout values are higher as well. Instead, the nearby lean hog contracts traded slightly lower while the deferred months were traded mildly higher. At this point, it’s proving that the market’s resistance at $100 is simply too much pressure for traders to stomach.
