Corn: March corn futures gained 2 ½ cents to $4.47 3/4 in a holiday-shortened session that also marked first-notice day for the December contract. March corn rose 10 ¼ cents on the week. U.S. markets were closed Thursday for Thanksgiving Day. USDA continues to play catch-up in reporting weekly export sales after the government shutdown. Corn was boosted after data for the week ended Oct. 16 showed net export sales of 2.823 million MT for the current marketing year and 571,500 MT for the next marketing year. Strong export demand has provided a lift for corn futures.
Soybeans: January soybeans rose 6 ¼ cents to $11.37 ¾, for a weekly gain of 12 ¾ cents. March soybean meal lost $1.70 to $318.70 on Friday, while March soybean oil rose 1.01 cents to 52.55 cents. Soybeans followed through on renewed buying interest that showed up Wednesday, following news reports that China bought at least 10 cargoes of U.S. soybeans in contracts signed since Tuesday. USDA on Friday morning reported a flash sale of 312,000 metric tons of soybeans for delivery to China during the 2025/2026 marketing year. For the week ended Oct. 16, USDA reported U.S. soybean net export sales for the current marketing year were 1.108 million MT. Also, China has halted soybean imports from five Brazilian plants owned by major global agricultural firms over sanitation concerns, according to Bloomberg.
Wheat: Wheat futures put in a mixed performance. March SRW fell 2 cents to $5.38 1/2, near mid-range, losing 1 ¼ cents for the week. March HRW dropped 2 ½ cents to $5.27 ½, up 1 ¼ cents for the week. March spring wheat futures were off ½ cent at $5.78, up 2 ¾ cents for the week.
Cotton: March cotton was up 16 points at 64.73 cents, for a weekly gain of 88 points. Cotton futures saw some short covering this week, with recent price action offering an early suggestion the bears are exhausted and that a near-term price bottom is in place.
Cattle: February live cattle gained $4.55 to $215.575, rising $3.075 for the week. January feeder cattle gained $8.85 to $323.975, for a weekly rise of $9.75. The live and feeder cattle futures markets both saw corrective bounces after suffering limit-down losses Monday in the wake of a decision by meat-packer Tyson to close its Lexington, Nebraska, beef plant and consolidate operations at an Amarillo, Texas, plant.
Hogs: February lean hogs lost 37.5 cents to settle at $81.00, but rose $3.30 for the week after finding support Wednesday on perceived bargain hunting.