GRAIN CALLS
Corn: Steady to 2 cents lower.
Soybeans: 4 to 6 cents lower.
Wheat: Winter wheat 10 to 12 cents lower; HRS 5 to 7 cents lower.
GENERAL COMMENTS: Wheat faced heavy selling overnight, giving up all of yesterday’s gain. Meanwhile, corn and soybeans saw modest selling. Front-month crude oil futures are trading lower this morning and are back below $70 while the U.S. dollar index is around 325 points lower.
President Trump Thursday signed an executive order advancing regenerative U.S. agriculture, with USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins simultaneously announcing a final regenerative feedstock rule, “that will help farmers voluntarily capture new value from regenerative agricultural practices through biofuel markets,” said a USDA press release. The executive order and USDA’s regenerative feedstock rule “provide the next critical step by ensuring producers have a practical pathway to benefit from those expanding markets.” The Regenerative Feedstock Rule establishes a framework to connect regenerative agriculture practices to new markets within the biofuel supply chain for corn, soybeans, sorghum, and spring canola. The new framework creates significant opportunities for America’s leading biofuel feedstock producers. Read the full USDA press release here.
The USDA Animal and Plant Health and Inspection Service (APHIS) on its NWS website is now reporting 25 total New World screwworm detected cases in the U.S. and all still in Texas and New Mexico, with the newest five all in Texas. There are 23 active cases, all in Texas.
An attack on a container vessel sailing through the Strait of Hormuz has prompted some shipowners to review exit plans. However, traffic generally continued to flow in both directions through the strait on Friday, with vessels including fully laden tankers and empty very large crude carriers sailing along the Omani coast. The U.S. has said Iran must keep the strait toll-free and ensure ships aren’t charged any fees if it wants a permanent peace deal, with Secretary of State Marco Rubio warning that tolls could lead to “chaos.” The strike on the Ever Lovely on Thursday — the first since an interim U.S.-Iran peace deal was signed — has seen some owners and captains pull back, according to shipowners, who declined to be named. At least one company based in Asia revised earlier plans to exit and told staff that vessels in the gulf should stay put as executives reassess transit options, according to a message seen by Bloomberg News.
CORN: July corn futures are struggling near 10-day moving average resistance at $4.14 3/4. Support comes in at $4.11 3/4 then $4.07 on persistent selling.
SOYBEANS: July soybean futures turned modestly lower following Thursday’s big gain. Support comes in at $11.13 1/2 on persistent selling pressure, while resistance stands at the psychological $11.25 mark.
WHEAT: July SRW wheat gave up yesterday’s gain overnight. Bulls are seeking to hold prices above $5.80 today. Resistance stands at $5.91 1/4 on a bounce, which marks the 10-day moving average.
LIVESTOCK CALLS
CATTLE: Choppy/higher.
HOGS: Higher.
CATTLE: Cattle futures are expected to open with a mostly firmer tone in a continuation of recent strength. Bulls have defended the 10-day moving average on pullbacks the last couple sessions. Futures remain at steep discounts to the cash market, likely to limit any pullback. Cash trade continues to pick up as the week goes on, averaging $260.00 thus far. Choice beef slid another $2.62 to $396.32 Thursday, extending the pullback from Tuesday’s quote above $400.
HOGS: Hog futures are expected to open higher, supported by yesterday’s Hogs & Pigs Report. USDA’s quarterly Hogs & Pigs Report released Thursday afternoon showed the U.S. hog herd at 73.664 million head as of June 1, down 33,000 head, or 0.04%, from a year ago and 696,000 head less than the average pre-report guess. Market hog inventories rose 36,000 head, or 0.1%, while the breeding herd shrank 1.2% from a year ago. The report was slightly bullish against expectations. The latest CME lean hog index is up 38 cents to $91.85. Pork cutout rose $1.36 to $95.22 Thursday, led by gains in bellies and hams.