GRAIN CALLS
Corn: Steady to 2 cents higher.
Soybeans: Steady to 2 cents higher.
Wheat: Winter wheat 6 to 8 cents lower; HRS 2 to 4 cents lower.
GENERAL COMMENTS: Wheat saw relative weakness overnight while corn and soybeans did not stray far from unchanged. Positioning continues to drive trade ahead of Friday’s reports, though lack of Chinese demand despite recent agreements has begun to weigh on the market. Outside markets are unsupportive this morning as front-month crude oil futures are modestly lower though holding above $60.00, while the U.S. dollar index is around 200 points higher.
U.S. House of Representatives members are returning to Washington, D.C. today for a vote to end the 43-day U.S. government shutdown. House Speaker Mike Johnson said he believes the legislation, a hard-fought compromise forged in the Senate and endorsed by President Trump, will pass quickly. “But he’ll need to keep his fractious party in line in the face of stiff resistance from House Democrats whose leaders are urging them to vote against the legislation,” reports Bloomberg. “The problems caused by the shutdown, the longest in U.S. history, have worsened in recent days, adding urgency to efforts to find a political resolution,” said Bloomberg. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy warned on Tuesday there would be “massively more disruption as we come into the weekend if the government doesn’t open.” It could still take days for air travel to return to normal and possibly longer for most of the 42 million low-income Americans in the SNAP program to receive delayed benefits.
China’s purchases of U.S. soybeans appear to have stalled out less than two weeks after the U.S.-China trade truce that signaled thawing relations between the world’s two biggest economies. “After a flurry of orders late last month — which were the first of this season — Chinese imports of U.S. cargoes seem to have faltered, according to traders who asked not to be identified discussing confidential information,” Bloomberg reports. “They said they were not aware of new shipments. The pause is fueling uncertainty over whether the biggest consumer of American soybeans will import as much as U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration claims to expect.”
CORN: December corn continues to trend sideways. Bulls are looking to overcome resistance at $4.35 to reestablish bullish momentum, while support stands at $4.28 1/4 on weakness.
SOYBEANS: January soybeans struggled to maintain early bullish overnight momentum. Resistance stands at $11.30 then $11.37 on a push higher, while support stands at $11.16 1/4, the 10-day moving average, on a push lower.
WHEAT: December SRW led weakness overnight. Key resistance persists at the 100-day moving average at $5.35 1/2 while support comes in at $5.27 then $5.24 1/2 on continued selling pressure.
LIVESTOCK CALLS
CATTLE: Choppy/higher.
HOGS: Choppy/higher.
CATTLE: Cattle futures are expected to open with a mostly firmer tone, though continued technical selling pressure could limit gains after the open. Prices challenged downtrend resistance earlier this week before seeing modest selling yesterday. Funds and technical traders have taken hold of the market, but the fundamental perspective has not shifted much as tight supplies persist. Wholesale beef posted gains on Tuesday as choice cutout firmed $1.90 to $379.22 while select climbed 38 cents to $360.08.
HOGS: Lean hog futures are expected to open with a mostly firmer tone in a continuation of recent strength, though technical resistance could limit gains after the open. February futures saw gains stall out at the 20-day moving average Tuesday, which persists just over the market. Meanwhile, the CME lean hog index continues to work lower, falling another 24 cents to $89.17 as of Nov. 10. Pork cutout slid $2.84 to $97.38 Tuesday, led by losses in bellies and butts.