After the Bell | May 17, 2023

Corn: July corn futures fell 19 3/4 cents to $5.61 1/2, with nearby corn futures sinking to a 1.5-year low today. Corn futures plunged as a proverbial perfect bearish storm cast a shadow over prices.

Soybeans: July soybeans fell 27 cents at $13.37 and near the session low. Nearby soybean futures prices hit a 15-month low today. July soybean meal dipped $1.60 to $425.30 and nearer the session low. July bean oil closed down 104 points at 46.41 cents, nearer the session low and hit another 12-month low. The soybean and bean oil futures markets were hit hard again today amid the downdraft in corn and wheat futures markets.

Wheat: July SRW futures fell 22 cents to $6.25 1/2, the lowest level since May 3. July HRW futures made a 6-month high early on before falling 11 1/4 cents to $8.85 1/2. Spring wheat futures fell 19 cents to settle at $8.59 3/4. Wheat futures saw extensive selling throughout the day, although HRW futures fared better, sending the HRW-SRW spread to a fresh record.

Cotton: July cotton gained 356 points to 86.94 cents and nearer the session high. Prices hit a two-month high today. The cotton futures bulls today put in a very impressive performance, securing solid gains in the face of big selloffs in the grain futures markets the past two sessions and a resurgent U.S. dollar index that hit a six-week high today.

Cattle: June live cattle futures rose 95 cents to $164.825, while August feeder futures fell 32.5 cents to $231.15. The prospect of continued cash market firmness seemed to support nearby live cattle futures Wednesday.

Hogs: June lean hog futures fell $2.325 to $84.875 as traders removed premium from the summer contracts. Lean hog futures were not immune to overall commodity weakness as prices fell under pressure throughout Wednesday’s session.