May corn futures are down 13 to 14 cents at midday with December corn futures down 9 to 10 cents.
May soybean futures are 10 cents lower with November futures down 3 cents. New crop soybean futures are lower but well off their lows. The weekly export sales report this week showed a good week for new crop soybeans being bought. The U.S. is getting a good book of new crop soybeans sold for the upcoming marketing year.
May Chicago wheat is 16 cents lower. May Kansas City wheat is 14 cents lower, and May Minneapolis is 2 cents lower.
Spring wheat futures did trade positive for a bit as North Dakota, Montana and northern Minnesota braces for another snowstorm this weekend. This will push back seeding of spring wheat another week.
Live cattle, which are up 75 cents, are pushing higher from the technical breakout to the upside we saw yesterday. Ninety-five cents higher, feeder cattle are finding support as nearby corn futures are under pressure and the selling continues in the pork complex. Lean hogs down $1.40 per hundred.
Crude oil is up $1.29 this morning, and the Dow futures are 136 points higher.
Opening Comments: 8:30 a.m.
May corn futures are 8¢ to 9¢ lower, and May soybean futures are 14¢ to 15¢ lower. May Chicago wheat is 8¢ lower. May Kansas City wheat futures are 10¢ lower, and May Minneapolis wheat futures are 2¢ lower.
Livestock prices are higher this morning. Live cattle are 40¢ higher; feeder cattle are $1.15 higher. Lean hog futures are 25¢ higher. Live cattle yesterday had a very good trading day breaking out above recent resistance. Low numbers and strong demand are pushing beef prices higher. Pork, on the other hand, is not finding many friends. Exports this week were slow due to COVID spreading in China and a high U.S. dollar.
Crude oil is up $1.80 this morning and the stock market is up 280 points to start off Thursday’s trade.
The weekly export sales report came out this morning. While it was pretty good for soybean exports, it was disappointing for corn and wheat. Higher prices and a strong U.S. dollar are the main drivers to the slower-than-expected exports this week.
Fundamentals are still supportive, but we need to feed the market some new information soon, or we could see a correction.
Weather forecasts do look to open up and give the U.S. producer a shot at planting crops in early May. With the equipment we have these days, the crop can be planted quickly.
About the Author: Cory Bratland is a chief grain strategist with Kluis Commodity Advisors.
