Photo: File

U.S. livestock: Live cattle futures jump to 7-year peak as U.S. herd shrinks

Chicago | Reuters – Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures rallied to a fresh seven-year high on Monday, lifted by expectations for tightening supplies following a monthly U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) cattle supply report, traders said. Several actively traded nearby contracts posted life-of-contract highs after the USDA’s cattle-on-feed report, released after the market closed on […] Read more

Photo: Thinkstock

U.S. grains: Soybeans, corn ease as U.S. harvest progresses amid dull demand

Chicago | Reuters – U.S. corn and soybean futures eased on Monday as concerns about dull demand anchored prices as newly harvested crops flooded the market. Wheat declined on weak demand and as rains in the drought-hit U.S. Plains wheat belt lifted prospects for the recently planted winter crop. Largely favourable weather across the Midwest […] Read more


File photo of vessels on the Mississippi River south of New Orleans on Nov. 5, 2017. (Dave Bedard photo)

Shallow Mississippi River expected to persist as dry winter hits U.S. South

River levels at historic lows this fall

Reuters — Low water levels on the Mississippi River are likely to persist this winter as drier-than-normal weather is expected across the southern U.S. and Gulf Coast, U.S. government forecasters said on Thursday. Drought, which currently spans 59 per cent of the country, is expected to continue or worsen in the middle and lower Mississippi […] Read more

CBOT December 2022 soft red winter wheat (candlesticks) with Bollinger bands (20,2), MGEX December 2022 hard red spring wheat (yellow line) and K.C. December 2022 hard red winter wheat (orange line). (Barchart)

U.S. grains: Wheat drops on firm dollar, hopes for Black Sea talks

Lower wheat, dull demand weigh on corn, soybeans

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. wheat futures fell on Friday, surrendering all the prior session’s gains on a stronger dollar and hopes of progress in negotiations to maintain a Ukrainian Black Sea grain export corridor. Corn and soybeans followed wheat lower, weighed down by lacklustre demand and pressured by lower energy and equities markets. On […] Read more


CME December 2022 lean hogs (candlesticks) with 20-, 30- and 100-day moving averages (pink, brown and black lines). (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: Lean hog futures rise on good demand

Cattle futures mostly lower

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange lean hog futures climbed to a near three-week high on Friday as strong demand and improved pork packer margins sparked buying ahead of the weekend, traders said. Another solid week of pork export sales added support, soothing concerns about rising supplies of market-ready hogs, they said. “Demand is […] Read more

CME December 2022 live cattle (candlesticks) with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages (pink, dark red and black lines). (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: Cattle, hogs mostly down on weak margins, inflation worries

Beef packer margins in negative territory

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange cattle and hog futures ended mostly lower on Thursday on eroding meat packer margins and as soaring inflation raises demand concerns, traders said. Technical selling and profit-taking further fueled declines in livestock futures after live cattle and lean hog contracts touched 2-1/2-week highs this week. A U.S. Labor […] Read more


CBOT December 2022 soft red winter wheat (candlesticks) with 20-day moving average (dark green line), MGEX December 2022 hard red spring wheat (yellow line) and K.C. December 2022 hard red winter wheat (orange line). (Barchart)

U.S. grains: Wheat rallies as Russia threatens to quit Black Sea deal

Corn, soybeans pare losses as wheat gains

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. wheat futures rebounded on Thursday from two days of declines on concerns that a Black Sea export corridor deal may not be renewed next month, which could again disrupt grain shipments from Ukraine. Corn and soybeans pared earlier losses on spillover support from wheat and follow-through buying after the U.S. […] Read more

CME October 2022 live cattle (candlesticks) with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages (pink, red and black lines). (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: Live cattle mostly up with consumption forecast

Chicago lean hogs also up on day

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures ended mostly firmer on Wednesday as wholesale beef prices stabilized after a recent slide and as a monthly government report helped to temper concerns about waning consumption. Gains were capped by eroding beef packer margins, although cattle demand is likely to remain high this week […] Read more


CBOT November 2022 soybeans (candlesticks) with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages (yellow, green and black lines). (Barchart)

U.S. grains: USDA cuts soy, corn crop outlooks, trims demand

Large Russian wheat supplies temper war worries

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. soybean futures jumped to a two-week high on Wednesday after the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) unexpectedly cut its U.S. harvest forecast and raised imports by top soy buyer China in a monthly report. Soybean price gains were held in check, however, by expectations for large South American crops that […] Read more

The Mississippi River. (Mark D. Tomer photo courtesy ARS/USDA)

U.S. barge backlog swells on parched Mississippi River

Chicago | Reuters –– Commercial barge traffic on southern stretches of the Mississippi River was at a standstill on Tuesday as low water levels halted shipments of grain, fertilizer and other commodities on the critical waterway, shipping sources said. The supply chain snarl comes just as harvesting of corn and soybeans, the largest U.S. cash […] Read more