After the Bell | April 6, 2022
Corn: May corn futures fell 3 1/4 cents to $7.56 1/2. December futures fell 1 3/4 cents to $7.04 3/4. Corn futures fell under mild profit-taking pressure in the wake of firm gains posted the first two days this week. Forecasters predict a wetter and cooler weather for parts of the U.S. Corn Belt late this week that may delay early planting, though it’s too early for planting delays to have any market impact.
Soybeans: May soybeans fell 11 1/2 cents to $16.19 1/2. May soymeal fell $4.10 to $461.80, while May soyoil fell 58 points to 71.83 cents. The soy complex was pressured by profit-taking and corrective selling. China returned to the U.S. market as a buyer after an absence of over a week. USDA reported a daily sale of 132,000 MT of soybeans for delivery to China during the 2021-22 marketing year.
Wheat: May SRW wheat fell 7 cents to $10.38 1/4. May HRW wheat rose 2 1/4 cents to $10.85 after falling earlier as low as $10.61 1/2. May spring wheat fell 3 cents to $11.08 3/4. Wheat futures fell under mild profit-taking and corrective pressure that began overnight before recovering losses later in the U.S. session, with HRW contract turning higher.
Cotton: May cotton fell 184 points to 135.69 cents per pound and new-crop December fell 32 points to 114.50 cents. The cotton market seems to be shifting in concert with the equity indexes this week, with traders apparently thinking the economic outlook will greatly influence consumer demand for cotton.
Hogs: April lean hogs rallied $1.075 to $98.75 and June futures rose 35 cents to $114.70. Hog futures rebounded amid ideas the sharp declines over the past week were overdone, considering tight animal supplies. Still, cash benchmarks continue to erode, with tomorrow’s CME lean hog index expected to drop 58 cents to $101.08, the fifth straight daily decline. Pork cutout values rose 77 cents today to $104.37 on movement of 286.6 loads.
