After the Bell | March 8, 2024
Corn: May corn futures rose 1 3/4 cents to $4.39 3/4, marking a 15-cent gain on the week and the second consecutive week of gains. Following a weaker overnight session, bulls took the opportunity to buy the dip, with accelerated buying following this morning’s USDA reports.
Soybeans: May soybeans rallied 17 3/4 cents to $11.84, marking the highest close since Feb. 1 and gaining 32 3/4 cents on the week. May soymeal rose $7.00 to $341.40 and picked up $9.10 week-over-week. May soyoil slid 18 points lower to 46.17 but rose 101 points from a week ago. Soybeans remained subdued ahead of USDA’s March supply and demand update as traders positioned ahead of the data, though buying began to pick up an hour ahead of the report, with a notable increase following its release.
Wheat: May SRW wheat futures rose 9 1/4 cents to $5.37 3/4 and nearer the daily high after setting a contract low early on. For the week, May SRW lost 20 cents. May HRW wheat futures gained 14 cents to $5.88 3/4 and near the session high. For the week, May HRW rose 24 1/4 cents. May spring wheat rose 8 cents to $6.62 3/4 and rose 19 cents on the week, notching the first weekly gain in six weeks. Today’s short-covering gains in winter wheat futures, that included a technically bullish weekly high close in May HRW wheat and a potential “key reversal” up in May SRW, begin to offer some hope for the bulls that wheat futures markets are near price bottoms.
Cotton: May cotton fell the 400-point daily limit to 95.28 cents and gave up 29 points on the week. Cotton futures largely ignored USDA’s supply and demand data today as outside-market pressure ignited heavy selling.
Cattle: April live cattle futures closed down $1.125 at $187.60 and nearer the session low after hitting a 4.5-month high early on. For the week, April cattle lost 85 cents. May feeder cattle futures lost $1.70 to $256.75 and near the daily low. For the week, May feeders fell $3.425. Today’s downside price action in the cattle futures markets and closes at or near the weekly lows suggest the bulls are tired, which could set up some follow-through technical selling interest early next week.
Hogs: Hog futures traded mixed to higher Friday, with the summer contract posting another round of modest gains, whereas nearby April and the deferred contracts slipped. April hogs ended the week at $84.375, down 15 cents on the day and $3.70 on the week. Traders are apparently anticipating short-term weakness across the hog and pork complex, with a resumption/acceleration of the seasonal rally possibly coming after Easter.
