GRAIN CALLS
Corn: 4 to 6 cents higher.
Soybeans: 3 to 5 cents higher.
Wheat: Winter wheat 2 to 4 cents lower; HRS 2 to 4 cents higher.
GENERAL COMMENTS: Corn led strength overnight, gapping higher amid a lack of rain in the forecast as the bulk of the crop heads into pollination over the next couple weeks. Soybeans followed higher but wheat struggled to maintain early bullish momentum. Crude oil futures are higher this morning amid an increase in strikes in the Middle East. The U.S. dollar index is trading near unchanged this morning.
USDA reported daily sales of 136,000 MT of soybeans for delivery to China during the 2026-27 marketing year.
World Weather Inc. issued a special report Sunday evening detailing excessive heat that developed in the northern Plains during the weekend, as expected, with extreme highs up to 115 degrees Sunday afternoon. Temperatures may not be quite so extreme this week, but they will still be in the 90s to well over 100 while little to no rain falls, resulting in an expansion of drought from South Dakota, Nebraska, Wyoming and Montana northward to parts of both North Dakota and Minnesota. The heat will shift to the east Monday and lose some of its intensity. However, extreme highs of 100 to 110 will continue today in the Dakotas and the range of 95 to 106 Tuesday through Thursday before cooling just slightly more Friday into Saturday. Heat soaring well into the 90s will spread into the upper Midwest today, before reaching the Great Lakes and the Northeast on Tuesday, along with increasing humidity.
The U.S. and Iran exchanged fresh strikes over the weekend and into Monday as they continued their tit-for-tat attacks while issuing conflicting declarations over whether the Strait of Hormuz is open to shipping. U.S. Central Command said American forces carried out a new round of attacks to degrade Iran’s ability to threaten shipping in the narrow waterway, hitting dozens of targets including Iranian air-defense systems and missile capabilities. Tehran retaliated with attacks on U.S. allies in the Persian Gulf and beyond, targeting U.S. bases in Kuwait, Bahrain and Jordan. European and U.S. stocks fell as oil prices rose on the military action in the Middle East. A handful of ships have passed through the Strait of Hormuz in secret in recent days, even as observable crossings all but ceased after a flare-up in fighting between the US and Iran, according to Bloomberg. All of the six commodity carriers that transited Hormuz on Sunday did so with their transponders turned off, according to preliminary Kpler data analyzed by Bloomberg News.
Russia and Ukraine attacked each others key grain export gateways over the weekend after shipping across the Sea of Azov was disrupted on Friday, triggering a spike in wheat prices. “Ukraine targeted four vessels with drones in Taganrog Bay in the Sea of Azov following a strike on the area on Friday that disrupted shipping through a key export corridor,” said a Bloomberg report. Russia temporarily halted shipping through the Don-Azov Channel, a waterway linking the Don River with the Sea of Azov, Reuters reported, citing sources in the grain export industry. It also closed the Kerch Strait, which connects the Sea of Azov and the Black Sea, from Friday evening, the newswire said. “In total, Ukraine struck 28 vessels of Russia’s fleet overnight in the Sea of Azov, including tankers and dry cargo ships, Robert Brovdi, a Ukrainian drone unit commander known as Madyar, said in a Telegram post. He also reported that 76 have been hit since July 6, a claim that couldn’t be independently verified,” said Bloomberg. Meantime, Russia over the weekend targeted port facilities in Odesa and Chornomorsk, in the Odesa region of Ukraine’s Black Sea coast, as well as sea vessels, the Russia’s Defense Ministry in Moscow said.
CORN: December corn futures are leading strength. Prices gapped above key resistance at $4.66 overnight, which remains a key technical benchmark. Support lies at $4.57 1/2 on persistent selling, while resistance lies at $4.70.
SOYBEANS: November soybean futures are trading near recent highs. Bulls continue to encounter stiff resistance at the psychological $12.00 mark, which is backed by resistance at the overnight high of $12.07 1/4. Support comes in at $12.81 1/2 on a turn lower.
WHEAT: September wheat futures saw some profit-taking overnight. Bulls are looking to hold support at $6.27 on persistent selling pressure. Bulls are eyeing resistance at $6.50 then the overnight high of $6.53 on resurgent strength.
LIVESTOCK CALLS
CATTLE: Choppy/higher.
HOGS: Choppy/higher.
CATTLE: Live cattle and feeder futures are expected to open with a mostly firmer tone on corrective buying. Bulls are looking to build on the late-session strength seen Friday and close prices higher for the first time in two weeks. Cash cattle trade finished sharply lower last week following big declines in futures. Choice beef inched $1.87 higher to $382.68 Friday, showing some strength after recent weakness.
HOGS: Lean hog futures are expected to open with a mostly firmer tone in a continuation of the ongoing uptrend. Cash market gains have underpinned strength in futures as the CME lean hog index is up another 34 cents to $92.69 as of July 9. Bulls remain in control of the technical advantage as well as traders anticipate cash prices will continue to chip higher into August. Pork cutout rose $2.53 to $101.34 Friday, led by gains in bellies and picnics, though all cuts saw gains on the day.