GRAIN CALLS
Corn: 1 cent lower to 1 cent higher.
Soybeans: 2 to 4 cents lower.
Wheat: 2 to 4 cents lower.
GENERAL COMMENTS: Corn, soybeans and wheat favored the upside in early overnight trade but have since turned lower, though each did see an uptick in buying pressure going into the break. Each is threatening the recent uptrend on the daily bar chart. The recent reversal higher in equities has done little to spur strength in ag commodities. Front-month crude oil futures are trading near steady this morning while the U.S. dollar index is around 100 points lower.
USDA reported daily exports sales of 123,000 MT of soybeans for delivery to China during the 2025-26 marketing year.
U.S. officials are pushing Ukraine to accept the terms of a 28-point proposal to end Russia’s war against Ukraine as the basis for negotiations, according to two people familiar with the matter and as reported by Bloomberg. U.S. officials, including Army Secretary Dan Driscoll, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Special Envoy Steven Witkoff, met with their Ukrainian counterparts in Geneva Sunday to discuss the U.S. plan as President Trump continues to push for a quick deal. The discussions Sunday demonstrated significant progress in reconciling positions and clearly identifying next steps, Andriy Yermak, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s chief of staff, said in a post on Telegram and as reported by Bloomberg. Trump’s proposed Nov. 27 deadline to secure Ukraine’s support for the plan isn’t set in stone and could drift into the following week, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said after the meeting in Switzerland. Any agreement would require sign-off by Zelenskiy, Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Cattle futures traders Friday afternoon got their first USDA monthly cattle-on-feed report since September 19. The agency Friday afternoon reported cattle and calves on feed for the slaughter market in the U.S. for feedlots with capacity of 1,000 or more head totaled 11.7 million head on November 1. The inventory was 2 percent below November 1, 2024, which was very close to market expectations. Placements in feedlots during October totaled 2.04 million head, 10 percent below 2024 and less than traders expected. Net placements were 1.99 million head. Placements were the lowest for October since the series began in 1996.
Tyson Foods Inc. on Friday said it is ending operations at a beef plant in Lexington, Nebraska and cutting a shift at an Amarillo, Texas facility as the meat producer loses millions of dollars amid the smallest U.S. cattle herd in decades. “Consumers are paying record-high prices for beef as packers are forced to pay up to buy a shrinking amount of cattle. U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration has moved to boost imports from countries, including Brazil and Argentina, to help make up a domestic shortfall, but the measures have yet to bring down retail prices,” said a Bloomberg report. Tyson earlier this month said it was set to lose as much as $600 million in its beef segment in fiscal 2026, after losing $720 million over the past two years. The company on Friday said it was seeking to “right-size its beef business” by ending operations in Lexington, Nebraska, and converting the plant in Amarillo, Texas, to a single shift.
CORN: March corn futures traded lower overnight. Bulls are seeking to hold support at $4.35 then $4.30 on persistent selling. Resistance stands at $4.41 1/4 on a reversal higher.
SOYBEANS: January soybeans gapped higher before reversing lower overnight. Support stands at $11.18, a close below which would indicate a technical breakdown. Resistance stands at $11.29 on a bounce.
WHEAT: March SRW wheat favored the downside overnight. Support comes in at $5.30 on persistent selling pressure. Resistance stands at $5.43 on a bounce.
LIVESTOCK CALLS
CATTLE: Choppy/higher.
HOGS: Choppy/higher.
CATTLE: Live cattle futures are expected to open with a mostly firmer tone, supported by a modestly bullish Cattle on Feed report on Friday. Still, last week’s cash cattle average is likely to show another week-over-week decline, which could continue to weigh on futures. Wholesale beef showed some strength on Friday, with choice cutout rising 20 cents to $371.48, while select rose $2.80 to $356.98.
HOGS: Lean hog futures are expected to open with a mostly firmer tone, supported by steep discounts to the cash index. February futures saw some corrective buying Friday after making a fresh for-the-move low. Meanwhile, losses in the cash market show little sign of slowing down, with the CME lean hog index falling another 90 cents to $84.81 as of Nov. 20. Pork cutout did bounce $3.22 to $93.43 Friday, led by gains in bellies and butts.