Overnight corn trading activity has the board 1 cent lower to 3 cents higher this morning. The 2021 crop contracts are higher. At the close on Thursday corn was down 3/4 to 3 cents. Export Sales data showed 2.244 MMT of corn booked, which was up 22% wk/wk and 308% above the same week last year. Accumulated commitments were 1.2 billion bushels through 8 weeks. USDA’s Ag Attaché sees Argentina’s 2020/21 corn output at 48 MMT and exports at 33 million. That is 2 MMT and 1 MMT respectively below USDA’s October WASDE estimates. IGC lowered their world corn production forecast 4 MMT to 1.156 billion tonnes. World ending stocks are estimated at 279 MMT for October, compared to 285 back in September.
--- provided by Brugler Marketing & Management
Beans are 6 to 9 cents per bushel higher this morning after closing as much as 5 1/2 lower on Thursday. Thursday’s giveback was stronger for Nov and Jan, reducing the inversion. Soybean meal futures closed yesterday with $0.10 to $1/ton gains. BO futures ended with 36 to 37 point losses. The weekly Export Sales report listed 1.62 MMT of bean bookings for the week ending 10/22. That was down 27% wk/wk, but up 80% yr/yr. Accumulated soybean export commitments were 1.73 billion bushels through the first 8 weeks of the MY. That exceeds the 2019/20 full year exports and is very close to 2018/19. USDA showed 199k MT of business for soymeal, with 5,971 MT of bean oil bookings. The International Grains Council, sees 2020/21 world bean output at 370 MMT. That was down 3 MMT from their Sept forecast and they lowered projected ending stocks by 4 to 46 million.
--- provided by Brugler Marketing & Management
Wheat futures are 3 to 5 cents higher this morning as some of the early week bears take profits ahead of the weekend. Yesterday, SRW futures gave back 4 1/4 to 5 1/4 cents, and HRW closed down by 3/4 to 1 1/4 cents. Spring wheat ended the day fractionally mixed to 4 1/4 cents weaker. USDA reported 743,176 MT of wheat bookings for the week ending 10/22. That was above estimates, 102% above LW and up 50% yr/yr. Exports from the same report were 230% higher wk/wk with 442,535 MT (16.26 mbu) shipped. Accumulated exports from weekly data is running 2.6% above last season’s pace with 10.632 MMT shipped since June 1. Board crush margins remain very attractive. IGC’s October forecast calls for 764 MMT of global wheat production. That was 1 MMT higher than the September number. Projected ending stocks were 3 MMT tighter at 291 MMT.
--- provided by Brugler Marketing & Management
October live cattle futures closed 42 cents higher at $106.27. They expire today. The other front months ended the session with triple digit gains of at least $1.77. Feeder cattle futures also closed with triple digit gains and ended the session $1.40 to $1.82 higher. October feeders went off the board at $136.45. The CME Feeder Cattle Index for 10/28 was $134.34, down by $1.19. Cash sales on Thursday remained light, with $106 in the South and $103 in NE. Beef export sales were reported at 18,853 MT for the week ending 10/22. That was down from 21.7k MT LW but still 19.8% higher yr/yr. Beef shipments are 666,564 MT for the year through 10/22. That outpaces 2019 by 1.5%. USDA’s wholesale boxed beef prices were stronger in the PM update. Choice boxes were $1.53 higher and Select boxes were up $1.65. USDA estimated the week’s cattle slaughter at 464,000 head through Thursday. That trails LW by 16,000 head and trails last year by 1,000.
--- provided by Brugler Marketing & Management
Lean hog futures closed the Thursday session down 22 to 77 cents for the nearby contracts. The CME Lean Hog Index for the 27th was $1.20 lower at $76.27. USDA’s National Average Base Hog price for Thursday afternoon was $61.70, down 31 cents. The National Pork Carcass Cutout value was $87.57 in the PM report, $3.05 higher. Hams led the way with a $14.24 increase to $97.78 cwt. USDA’s Export Sales report had 28,971 MT of pork bookings on the week ending 10/22. Mexico and Japan were the top buyers, with new Chinese business only accounting for 8.8% of the total. Pork exports were 14.5% above the same week last year with 37k MT. Accumulated shipments are 1.558 MMT, up 25% yr/yr, with 581,482 MT (37.3%) to China alone. USDA estimates the week’s FI hog slaughter at 1.956 million head through Thursday. That is 7,000 head more wk/wk and 5,000 more yr/yr.
--- provided by Brugler Marketing & Management
Cotton starts the Friday session 1 to 14 points higher. Yesterday, the cotton futures market was 17 to 35 points weaker at the close. Upland cotton export sales from USDA’s weekly update were 288,693 RBs. That was 27% above LW and 105% higher yr/yr. 28% of the total business was China with 81,394 RBs. Pakistan however was the top purchaser on the week with 125,900 RBs. Cotton export shipments from the report were 228,801 RBs bringing the MY total to 2.93 million bales. USDA’s Spot Cotton Quotations report showed a light 1,038 bales sold at an average price of 65.07 cents/lb on 10/29. The Cotlook A index for the 28th was 5 points higher at 78.40 cents/lb. USDA’s FSA increased the Adjusted World Price for cotton 1.66 cents to 57.37 for the week.
--- provided by Brugler Marketing & Management