Pro Farmer wishes you a Merry Christmas! Please be advised of the following holiday schedule:
Markets: Early close Wednesday; closed Thursday.
Reports: On Wednesday and Friday, we will observe an abbreviated schedule, publishing First Thing Today (8:00 a.m. CT) and After the Bell (Post-close). We will resume our regular publishing schedule on Monday, Dec. 29.
Corn: March corn futures rose 1/2 of a cent to $4.47 1/2, near mid-range and hit a two-week high. The corn futures market paused today after recent gains and ahead of the Christmas holiday.
Soybeans: January soybeans fell 1 3/4 cents to $10.51 1/2, nearer the daily low. January soybean meal rose $2.50 to $301.10, near mid-range. January soybean oil fell 25 points to 48.30 cents, nearer the session low. The soybean and bean oil futures today saw some mild technical selling, while meal posted decent gains on short covering.
Wheat: March SRW rose 1 1/2 cents to $5.17, nearer the daily high. March HRW rose 6 3/4 cents to $5.28, near the daily high. March spring wheat futures rose 1/4 of a cent to $5.80 1/4, nearer the daily high. The winter wheat futures bulls are starting to show some signs of life.
Cotton: March cotton rose 40 points to 64.01 cents, near mid-range. Cotton futures today saw short covering and perceived bargain buying.
Cattle: February live cattle fell $1.425 to $230.00, nearer the daily low. January feeder cattle lost $1.875 to $344.625, nearer the session low. The live and feeder cattle futures today saw profit-taking pressure from the shorter-term traders after prices in both markets hit two-month highs Monday.
Hogs: Lean hog futures rose 62 1/2 cents to $85.975, nearer the session high and hit a two-month high. Lean hog futures today saw more technical buying from the speculative traders.