Chicago | Reuters — U.S. corn futures inched higher on Monday on position-squaring ahead of a key monthly U.S. government crop report later this week and worries about forecasts for a freeze looming for the northwestern Corn Belt, traders said. Soybeans and wheat closed lower after a choppy session. Chicago Board of Trade December corn […] Read more

U.S. grains: Corn firm ahead of USDA report, frosty weather

U.S. livestock: CME hogs limit down on U.S.-China trade jitters
Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange hog futures fell their daily limit on Monday, declining for a fifth straight session as an aggressive slaughter pace and uncertainty about this week’s U.S. trade talks with China overshadowed rising pork cut-out values, traders said. The selloff came as U.S. and Chinese deputy trade negotiators launched a […] Read more

Snow to stall harvests for western Prairies, Montana
Chicago | Reuters — A weekend storm is poised to bring more than a foot (30.5 cm) of snow to parts of Montana and the Canadian Prairies, putting portions of the region’s spring wheat and canola crops at risk, a meteorologist said. Excessively wet conditions in the region this month have already slowed fieldwork and […] Read more

Wet harvests hurt U.S., Canadian spring wheat quality
Chicago | Reuters — Excessively wet conditions in the northern U.S. Plains and Canadian Prairies have hurt the quality of the region’s spring and durum wheat crops, potentially tightening supplies of top grades of the grains, handlers and agronomists said. Rains and heavy dew have slowed the harvest and, worse, caused mature, un-harvested wheat kernels […] Read more

U.S. grains: Fresh sales to China fuel soy optimism
Chicago | Reuters — U.S. soybean futures jumped to a one-month high on Thursday on news of fresh export sales to China and signs of a possible easing of the U.S. trade dispute with the world’s biggest buyer of the oilseed. Corn and wheat futures also rose, following soybeans. Meanwhile, the U.S. Department of Agriculture […] Read more

U.S. livestock: Live cattle limit down on weak cash prices
Chicago | Reuters — Front-month live cattle futures on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange fell their daily limit on Friday, dipping to the lowest level since 2016 as traders reacted to weak cash cattle prices, brokers said. Cash cattle traded at $100/cwt this week in Texas and Kansas, traders said, down from $103 last week (all […] Read more

U.S. grains: Corn hits contract lows on sluggish exports, mild weather
Chicago | Reuters — U.S. corn futures fell to life-of-contract lows on Friday, pressured by disappointing weekly U.S. export data and forecasts for benign weather in the heart of the Midwest crop belt, analysts said. Soybeans turned down, retreating from early advances, and wheat followed the lower trend. Chicago Board of Trade December corn settled […] Read more

U.S. grains: Soybeans sag on demand worries
Chicago | Reuters — U.S. soybean futures fell more than one per cent on Thursday on concerns about burdensome supplies and weak export demand as the U.S. trade war with China continues, analysts said. Wheat futures rose on short-covering and worries about drought in Australia, and corn edged higher, despite bearish weekly U.S. ethanol statistics. […] Read more

U.S. livestock: Live cattle fall as cash cattle, beef prices sag
Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures fell to contract lows on Thursday as cash cattle prices declined from last week and wholesale beef prices extended their slide, traders said. Cash cattle traded at $100/cwt in Texas and Kansas, traders said, down from $103 last week (all figures US$). “Boxed beef is […] Read more

U.S. grains: Corn extends slide on crop prospects
Chicago | Reuters –– Chicago corn futures fell for a third straight session on Wednesday, setting life-of-contract lows as improving crop ratings and benign weather forecasts raised confidence in U.S. harvest prospects, traders said. Wheat rose, with benchmark Chicago wheat rebounding from a three-month low set a day earlier and K.C. and Minneapolis hard wheat […] Read more