At the close:
At the close, the March corn futures finished 1 3/4¢ higher at $3.65 1/4. May futures finished 1 1/2¢ higher at $3.72 3/4. March soybean futures ended 3 14¢ lower at $9.83. May soybean futures finished 3 1/2¢ lower at $9.94 1/4. March wheat futures closed 14 1/4¢ higher at $4.60 1/2. March soy meal futures settled $3.70 per short ton higher at $335.40. January soy oil futures finished 0.60 lower at 32.56¢ per pound. In the outside markets, the NYMEX crude oil market is $1.55 lower, the U.S. dollar is higher, and the Dow Jones Industrials are 172 points higher.
Mike
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At mid-session:
At mid-session, the March corn futures are 1¢ higher at $3.64. May futures are 1/2¢ higher at $3.71. March soybean futures are 3/4¢ lower at $9.85. May soybean futures are 1 1/2¢ lower at $9.96. March wheat futures are 10¢ higher at $4.56. March soy meal futures are $3.60 per short ton higher at $335.30. January soy oil futures are 0.42 lower at 32.74¢ per pound. In the outside markets, the NYMEX crude oil market is $1.65 lower, the U.S. dollar is higher, and the Dow Jones Industrials are 223 points higher.
Jason Roose, U.S. Commodities grain analyst, says that the wheat market is on fire due to profit-taking.
“There is investor short covering in the corn and wheat markets, with positioning ahead of tomorrow's USDA Crop Report. Investors are anticipating lower stocks on both corn and wheat data sets.
He adds, “The soybean market is trading both sides of unchanged throughout the day on mixed forecasts in Brazil and Argentina,” Roose says.
Mike
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In early trading:
At 9:15am, the March corn futures are 1/4¢ higher at $3.63. May futures are 1/4¢ higher at $3.71. March soybean futures are unchanged at $9.86. May soybean futures are 1/4¢ lower at $9.97. March wheat futures are 4 3/4¢ higher at $4.51. March soy meal futures are $1.60 per short ton higher at $333.30. January soy oil futures are 0.01 higher at 33.17¢ per pound. In the outside markets, the NYMEX crude oil market is $0.36 higher, the U.S. dollar is higher, and the Dow Jones Industrials are 191 points higher.
Mike
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Wheat was higher overnight on forecasts for below-normal precipitation in the southern Plains for at least the next 15 days, exacerbating already-dry conditions in the region. Little or no rain has fallen in the area in the past 60 days now, leaving overwintering winter wheat that likely suffered from winterkill damage in late December in dire need of some water. Wheat's up 4-5 cents overnight. Soybeans, meanwhile, are lower after the big runup yesterday. Some of the buying was technical but the weather in Argentina continues to improve with rain expected in the next five days over 65% of the country's corn and soybean areas. Beans lost 2 cents. Corn was little changed.
In other news, Ag Secretary Sonny Perdue said yesterday that he's hopeful for a better deal from NAFTA negotiations, and is more optimistic now than he has been in a while. In weather news, the storm that wreaked havoc in the central Midwest has moved east and is getting ready to unleash the fury in Indiana, where only 2 inches of snow is expected today before 9 inches fall on Friday. It's snowpocalypse, snowmageddon, snowfury. Best get to the grocery store before everybody buys up all the bread like they did down here in Texas a couple weeks ago when the forecasts called for freezing weather for a few hours -- that's not a joke, people in Texas buy out bread aisles when it gets cold. Anyway, see the details in today's 3 Big Things at https://www.agriculture.com/news/three-big-things/3-big-things-today-february-7.
Brent Crude Oil = down 0.5%.
West Texas Intermediate = down 0.2%.
Dollar = up 0.3%.
Wall Street = U.S. stock futures lower in pre-market trading.
World Markets = Global stocks higher overnight.
