Corn: In a holiday-shortened session, March corn futures rose 3/4 cent to $4.48 1/2 and settled near mid-range. Some mild speculator buying interest today continued to support the rebound from a two-week low posted last Friday.
Soybeans: January soybeans rose 5 3/4 cents to $9.75 1/4, closing near the session high, while January meal gained $3.40, closing at $292.90, ending just above the 40-day moving average. January soyoil slid 39 points to 39.84 cents. Soybean futures took back Monday’s losses with modest gains in soymeal propping up the complex in low volume trade ahead of the Christmas holiday.
Wheat: March SRW wheat fell 5 3/4 cents to $5.34 3/4, while March HRW slid 7 1/4 cents to $5.43 3/4. March Spring wheat fell a nickel to $5.90 3/4. Each closed near session lows. Wheat futures underwent persistent selling pressure in light trade, though traded within Monday’s range.
Cotton: March cotton futures closed 64 points lower at 68.78 cents. Cotton futures gave up a portion of Monday’s impressive gain in light holiday trade.
Cattle: February live cattle fell 75 cents to $187.375, marking a mid-range close. Live cattle futures saw a quiet day of low volume trade, with February futures trading on either side of unchanged.
Hogs: In an abbreviated trading session, February lean hogs were unchanged at $84.375, ending near the daily high. The lean hog futures market today saw some buying support come from an improving cash hog market.