GRAIN CALLS
Corn: 3 to 5 cents lower.
Soybeans: 7 to 10 cents lower.
Wheat: 1 to 2 cents lower.
GENERAL COMMENTS: Profit-taking in the wake of the rally off the late-June lows kept pressure on grain and soybean futures overnight. Position-squaring ahead of Friday’s July World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates from USDA is also likely a factor.
In a special report issued Wednesday afternoon, World Weather Inc. said “an impressive ridge of high pressure will build through the Rocky Mountain region to the Great Plains and a part of southern Canada’s Prairies over the next few days.” The ridge will suppress rainfall for a week to nearly 10 days and it will induce several days of very warm to hot temperatures. The result of this mix will be a notable dry-down period for the northern U.S. Plains and northwestern corn and soybean belt that will stress dryland crops, especially in areas of low soil moisture which includes portions of Nebraska, South Dakota, southwestern Minnesota and northwestern Iowa. Late July and early August weather will need to be wetter and milder to protect production potential,” said the forecaster.
The U.S. military struck Iran for a second day and Tehran retaliated against American allies in the Persian Gulf, raising fears that the tit-for-tat attacks may derail talks on a permanent peace deal. U.S. Central Command said on X it hit about 90 targets on Wednesday “to further degrade” the Islamic Republic’s ability to attack commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz. Iran responded by targeting U.S. bases in Bahrain, Kuwait and Qatar.
Weekly export sales: Wheat saw net sales of 313,100 metric tons for the 2026-27 marketing year in the week ended July 2, with South Korea and Nigeria lead buyers. Corn: Net sales of 565,800 MT for 2025-26, down 23% from the previous week and 38% from the prior four-week average. New-crop sales were net 401,700 MT. Soybean net sales of 54,300 MT for 2025-26 were up 30% from the previous week but down 81% from the prior four-week average, with increases primarily for China at 202,100 MT, including 204,000 MT switched from unknown destinations and decreases of 3,600 MT. Net sales of 408,300 MT for 2026-27 were led by unknown destinations (338,000 MT).
CORN: December corn futures were turned back Wednesday after hitting resistance at the converged 100- and 200-day exponential moving averages, and fell through support this morning at $4.55. Next support is seen at $4.50. Initial resistance is seen at Wednesday’s high of $4.65 ¾ and then $4.70.
SOYBEANS: November soybean futures see technical support at $11.75. Resistance is seen at Wednesday’s session high of $12.04 and then $12.14.
WHEAT: September SRW wheat sees support at the psychologically important $6.00 level, with further support at $5.85. Initial resistance is seen at Wednesday’s high of $6.27, with bulls’ next upside objective being a close above solid chart resistance at $6.26 ½.
LIVESTOCK CALLS
CATTLE: Choppy/higher.
HOGS: Choppy/higher.
CATTLE: Cattle futures are expected to open with a firmer tone after Wednesday’s high-range close suggested sellers may be nearing exhaustion. Livestock stress is likely this week and into the weekend due to hotter temperatures in the Plains states. USDA at midday Wednesday reported still no cash cattle trading taking place so far this week. The agency on Monday said cash cattle trading last week averaged $255.12, which is down $4.22 from the week prior’s average price.
HOGS: Hog futures are expected to open with a firmer tone. The August contract ended Wednesday at a six-week high, giving the bulls fresh technical momentum and keeping the price uptrend alive on the daily chart. The latest CME lean hog index is up 11 cents to $91.66. Today’s projected CME index price is up 32 cents at $91.98. The national direct five-day rolling average cash hog price quote for Wednesday was $96.64.