Market Snapshot | April 12, 2022

Corn futures are 12 to 13 cents higher at midmorning.

• Nearby corn futures rose to five-week highs, supported by continued strength in the wheat market. New-crop futures are supported by prospects a slow start to Midwest planting may lead to fewer corn acers. 
• December corn reached $7.32 3/4, a contract high for the third straight session.
• USDA late yesterday reported 2% of the U.S. corn crop had been planted as of April, unchanged from the previous week and one percentage point behind the five-year average for that date.
• Three rounds of precipitation are expected through April 21 in the Midwest and fieldwork “will be sluggish as temperatures will often be cool enough that drying rates are too low to allow for much fieldwork to occur between precipitation events,” World Weather Inc. said today.
• South Korea purchased 207,000 MT of optional origin corn.
• May corn futures reached $7.79, the highest intraday price since $7.80 1/4 on March 7. Continued strength may have bulls targeting the $7.82 3/4 contract high posted March 4, as well as $8.00.

Soy complex futures are broadly higher, with old-crop soybeans up 16 to 19 cents, nearby soymeal up more than $4 and nearby soyoil up over 100 points.

• Nearby soybeans are gaining support from concerns over tightening global vegetable oil supplies, with Malaysian palm oil hitting a three-week high earlier today.
• A rebound in crude oil is also supporting the soy complex. Nearby Nymex crude oil is up more than $6 this morning.
• May soybeans are trading within yesterday’s range. Initial resistance is seen at yesterday’s high of $16.97 1/2, while support comes in at the 20-day moving average of $16.59 1/2.

Wheat futures are higher, led by gains of 15 to 17 cents in nearby HRW contracts. SRW futures are mostly 14 to 15 cents higher. Spring wheat is 5 to 8 cents higher.

• Winter wheat futures extended yesterday gains on continuing concerns over supply disruptions from the Russia/Ukraine war and sub-par crop conditions in the U.S. Plains.
• U.S. winter wheat conditions improved slightly, with USDA rating 32% of the crop good-to-excellent as of April 10, up from 30% a week earlier.
• When USDA’s weekly crop condition ratings are plugged into the weighted Pro Farmer Crop Condition Index (0 to 500-point scale, with 500 being perfect), the HRW crop improved 5.2 points to 277.8 and the SRW crop rose 3.2 points to 345.3. At those levels, the CCI ratings are still 52.1 points below the five-year average for HRW and 11.2 points below for the SRW crop.
• France’s ag ministry expects the country’s all-wheat planted area to fall 3.9% from year-ago to 4.79 million hectares. Winter wheat acreage at 4.77 million hectares would be down 4.0% from last year, while spring wheat acreage at 22,000 hectares would be down 0.2% from last year.
• Japan is seeking 114,645 MT of milling wheat from the U.S., Canada and Australia in its weekly tender. Egypt tendered for an unspecified amount of European origin wheat.
• July SRW wheat overnight rose as high as $11.25, the contract’s highest intraday price since $11.39 3/4 on March 22. July HRW reached $11.77 3/4, the highest since March 8.

Live cattle futures are firmer at midmorning.

• Live cattle futures extended yesterday’s gains behind strength in wholesale beef, which suggests improving retail demand as the spring grilling season nears.
• Choice cutout values rose $1.64 yesterday to $272.11, the highest in nearly two months. Movement was relatively light at 82 loads.
• Most traders expect the cash market to remain flat this week. Last week, cash prices averaged $138.82, down 50 cents from the previous week and the fifth consecutive week cash held within a roughly $1 trading range.
• June live cattle climbed to $136.025, the highest intraday price since $136.35 on April 4. Initial resistance is seen at the 20-day and 40-day moving averages, respectively. Key support is seen at last week’s low of $132.475.
• Feeder cattle are firmer despite strength in the corn market on support from broad-based buying in commodities and other asset-based markets.

Hog futures are sharply higher at midmorning, led by June and July contracts.

• Lean hog futures surged on technically-driven buying and strength in wholesale pork after prices broke above the range from the past few sessions.
• Pork cutout values jumped $3.48 yesterday to $106.64, the highest daily average since March 31. Movement was relatively light at 254 loads.
• The CME lean hog index fell 43 cents today to $99.63, the eighth consecutive decline and a five-week low.
• June lean hog futures rose as high as $118.225, the highest since $119.90 on April 4. The 20-day moving average at $119.35 marks initial resistance, while key support is seen at last week’s low of $112.20.