GRAIN CALLS
Corn: Steady to 2 cents lower.
Soybeans: 4 to 7 cents lower.
Wheat: 2 to 4 cents lower.
GENERAL COMMENTS: Corn, soybeans and wheat each favored the downside in overnight trade with selling pressure increasing going into the break. Still, each traded in relatively tight ranges. Oil futures plunged overnight on optimism around a deal with Iran. The U.S. dollar index continues to creep lower as well, down around 400 points this morning. U.S. stock index futures are climbing to record highs amid the favorable tone as well.
President Trump on Thursday struck an optimistic tone for prospects that the U.S. and Iran could clinch a permanent ceasefire as the two sides discuss an extended truce ahead of its expiration next week. “It’s looking very good that we’re going to make a deal with Iran, and it’s going to be a good deal,” Trump told reporters at the White House Thursday, according to Bloomberg. Talks between Washington and Tehran could resume this weekend, he said. Trump said that Iran had agreed to terms it has long resisted, including giving up ambitions for a nuclear weapon and turning over nuclear material. The deal would also include “free oil” and an opening of the Strait of Hormuz, Trump added. Tehran has not publicly confirmed it’s made those concessions. The president said he didn’t expect he would have to extend the two-week ceasefire in order to reach a deal, predicting a resolution would be made “fairly soon,” but that if he needed to, he would.
Australia’s wheat acreage for the 2026/27 crop is expected to fall to a seven-year low due to weak prices and shortages of fertilizer and fuel, Bloomberg reports. “The total wheat area is forecast to shrink by about 7.5% from a year earlier to 11.5 million hectares, with production expected to drop by about a fifth year-on-year to 29.8 million tons. Analysts’ opinions vary on the severity of the downturn, with some expecting a drop of more than 20% in sown acreage and a 40% decline in production, while others predict a smaller change in crop area and production.” The decline “shows how quickly the war in the Middle East has impacted the means of food production. A shortage of farm inputs due to the throttling of shipping via the Strait of Hormuz has forced farmers to revise plans, with rice growers in Southeast Asia also considering reduced planting in the weeks ahead,” said the report.
CORN: July corn futures saw continued consolidation overnight. Bulls are seeking to hold support at $4.55 1/2 on continued selling. Meanwhile, resistance stands at $4.58 1/4 on a reversal higher.
SOYBEANS: July soybeans are trading near 40-day moving average support, which coincides with the psychologically important $11.75 mark. That remains key support, with reinforcement from the April 8 low of $11.56 3/4. Resistance stands at $11.80 on a turn higher.
WHEAT: July SRW futures consolidated overnight. Support persists at $6.01 3/4 then $6.00. Bulls are eyeing yesterday’s high of $6.16 3/4 on persistent strength.
LIVESTOCK CALLS
CATTLE: Choppy/higher.
HOGS: Choppy/higher.
CATTLE: Live cattle futures are expected to open with a mostly firmer tone as technical buying is expected to boost prices. Additional profit-taking following yesterday’s selloff could limit gains after the open. The 10-day moving average limited most of the downside Thursday, which remains key support today. Cash trade so far this week has averaged $247.94, modestly below last week’s average of $248.38.
HOGS: Lean hogs are expected to open with a mostly firmer tone on profit-taking, though continued selling can’t be ruled out. June futures have closed lower for eight consecutive sessions now and prices are oversold on the daily bar chart. The CME lean hog index has shown potential signs of bottoming as its up another 6 cents to $90.66 as of April 15. Pork cutout climbed $1.54 to $96.68 Thursday, led by gains in bellies and hams.