Beef stocks climbed more than average during September, largely because the previous month’s figure was revised down 15.1 million pounds. Sept. pork stocks dropped, whereas there is normally a small buildup in supplies.
Iowa’s farmland values, which saw consecutive record-breaking increases for two years, are now showing signs of cooling, though they remain near historic highs.
The 90-day forecast from the National Weather Service signals increased chances of above-normal precipitation across the eastern half of Kansas, along with most of Texas and Oklahoma through January.
USDA reported weekly soybean sales of 1.372 MMT during week ended Oct. 12, up 30% from the previous week and 92% from the four-week average. Corn and wheat sales were steady on the week.
Soybean export inspections during week ended Oct. 12 rose over 600,000 MT from the previous week, notably exceeding pre-report estimates. Meanwhile, corn inspections fell short of the expected range.
Iowa has entered the legal fray by challenging a recently enacted Massachusetts law that prohibits the sale of pork not meeting specific hog-confinement standards, according to the Iowa Capital Dispatch.
Weekly wheat sales reached a marketing-year high in week-ended Oct. 5, while soybean sales rose 31% on the week and were up 68% from the four-week average.
USDA's October production and carryover figures were lower than pre-report estimates, though the most notable miss was the 4 MMT difference in new-crop global soybean carryover vs. expectations.
Uncertainties included difficulties estimating the state of financial markets, potential oil price shocks and the impact of labor union strikes on the economy, among other factors.
