Livestock producers: Extend feed coverage... We advise livestock producers to cover meal needs through November in the cash market. Soymeal futures are sharply below the September highs and continue to see persistent selling despite strong underlying fundamentals. Funds remain active sellers in the market despite robust meal demand. You were previously hand to mouth on feed coverage but now have coverage in cash through the end of November. We will look to advance coverage on signs of a bottom. You are covered through the end of the year for corn-for-feed needs. Check our advice monitor at ProFarmer.com for our marketing plan.
Oil futures fell hard on Friday, posting their biggest one-day percentage drop since July as traders appeared optimistic over the prospect of talks between the U.S. and Iran. Nymex WTI futures fell 7.4% to settle at $96.46 a barrel, while Brent crude dropped 7.6% to $104.77 a barrel.On Monday, Trump mouthed “no” when asked by a reporter if attacks on Iran would resume after the midterms, Bloomberg reported. Oil prices came under pressure after Axios reported that President Donald Trump had a phone call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Saturday about talks with Iran. The report said Netanyahu is pressing Trump to strike Iran immediately after the midterm elections on Tuesday but that Trump, for now, wants to let talks play out. Losses accelerated after Iran’s president said the government had been granted permission by the nation’s supreme leader to engage in negotiations.
It was a stark turnabout, however, from last week, when oil soared to multi-month highs following news reports the U.S. was preparing to launch renewed and intensified strikes on Iran after the midterm elections. The Wall Street Journal on Monday reported that America’s Gulf allies are steeling themselves for a heavy U.S. bombardment of Iran that they fear will trigger a vicious cycle of retaliation against their own economic and civilian infrastructure as early as this week.
Market recap: Soy complex futures got dragged down by the crude-oil selloff. Corn futures tested a for-the -move low but managed to eke out a gain after finding early support on a 1.7 million metric ton sale to Mexico. Wheat futures nudged higher on modest short covering, while disappointing cash trade and follow-through technical selling pressured live cattle. Lean hogs fell to another contract low on continued weakness in cash fundamentals.
- December corn rose ½ cent to close at $4.48 ¼.
- January soybeans dropped 17 ½ cents to end at $12.16 ¾, setting a 2.5 month lows. December soybean meal dropped $5 to $319.60, while December soyoil finished 82 points lower at 65.08 cents.
- December soft red winter wheat rose 3 cents to $6.06 ½. December hard red winter wheat gained 1 ¾ cents to $6.46, while December spring wheat added 2 cents to $6.25 ¾.
- December cotton lost 17 points to end at 77.66 cents, hitting a four-week low.
- December live cattle fell $1.25 to $219.70, hitting a four-week low. January feeders rose $0.90 to $332.675.
- December lean-hog futures lost $0.70 to finish at $58.175.
Crop progress update… Soybean harvest is all but complete across much of the U.S. growing area, while corn harvest continued to play catch-up, USDA’s latest crop progress figures showed.
- Corn harvest was 74% complete as of Sunday, up from 60% a week earlier and ahead of the 72% average estimate in a Bloomberg survey. The five-year average for this time of year is 77%.
- The soybean harvest was 94% complete, up from 79% a week earlier and well ahead of the 87% estimate and the five-year average of 84%.
- Winter wheat planting was 83% finished, up from 76% but behind the 83% average guess and one percentage point off the long-term average of 84%. USDA said 44% of the winter wheat crop was rated good or excellent, well below the 50% average estimate. Pro Farmer’s Crop Condition Index (0 to 500 scale, 500 equals perfect) for soft red winter wheat 367.45, noticeably higher than the 326.15 seen in hard red winter wheat. That suggests that longer-term drought effects in the southern Plains could be causing concern for production potentials, despite emergence tracking near-normal thus far in the season. See: CCI ratings show disparity between SRW and HRW conditions.
South America crop estimates unchanged… Pro Farmer crop consultant Dr. Michael Cordonnier left his estimates for corn and soybean crops in Brazil and Argentina unchanged Monday. With 53% of soybeans planted, he sees the crop at 182 million metric tons with a neutral bias. He noted that weekend rains favored Mato Grosso, Goiás, Minas Gerais, southwestern São Paulo, Paraná, and Santa Catarina. The heaviest rain occurred in southern Goias, northern Minas Gerais, and Santa Catarina. Dryness is still lingering in far northern growing areas, Cordonnier said, and it is still too dry in parts of northern Mato Grosso, northern Goias, Tocantins, Bahia, and northeastern Brazil. Rain will become more widespread during the 6-10 day period. Brazil’s first corn crop is 63% planted, and Cordonnier sees production at 140.0 MMT with a neutral bias.
Argentina’s soybeans are 2.3% planted. Cordonnier pegs the crop at 54.0 MMT, with a neutral bias. In the core production area, 5 to 8% of the soybeans have been planted. Soil moisture is optimum in most areas except for excess moisture in Entre Rios, he said. Soil temperatures are cooler than normal in Cordoba and Buenos Aires, Cordonnier observed, with soybean planting to conclude sometime in January. Argentina’s corn crop is 47% planted, with Cordonnier estimating the crop at 60 MMT. He noted that farmers have opted to plant more corn than the historical average at this point in the season, which may lead to more acres than originally anticipated.
Deere recalls workers from layoffs… Deere & Co. announced Friday that it’s recalling 275 employees and hiring more than 400 people across its factories, reports Farm Journal’s Eduardo Morales. The move comes as farm equipment makers struggle with sluggish demand. Deere officials have previously said they expect 2026 to be the bottom of the ag cycle. Friday’s move brings total company callbacks to approximately 1,000 since 2024, Morales reported. These recalls also ensure all of the employees who were previously laid off in Waterloo, the Quad Cities, Ottumwa and Dubuque have been invited back. Meanwhile, around 125 employees in the Des Moines area remain laid off.
Industry wants more out of Canada biofuel rules… Canada’s biofuels industry is warning that gaps remain in the government’s proposed rules aimed at matching U.S. incentives, Reuters reported, arguing that the changes won’t be enough to spark significant investment in the world’s top canola producer. Under the proposed rules, Canadian biofuel producers would receive more credits from the government for producing biofuels in Canada, the report said, and, to meet low-carbon emissions intensity limits, can either produce low-intensity fuels themselves or buy credits from others. The industry has long complained that U.S. subsidies are generally higher, discouraging production in Canada, the report said. At the same time, in order to earn the credits, some Canadian fuel blenders have imported U.S. product due to a shortfall in domestic production.