Corn: July corn fell 1 1/2 cents to $5.92 1/2, near the session low after marking an intraday high of $6.06. Nearby corn traded entirely opposite of Wednesday’s session, with an early run above $6.00 proving futile for bulls.
Soybeans: July soybeans closed up 29 3/4 cents at $13.29 1/2. July soybean meal rose $8.00 to $401.40. July bean oil gained 166 points to 47.86 cents. Prices closed nearer their session highs in all three markets. Heavy short covering and speculative bargain hunting were featured in soybeans, meal and bean oil today after all three markets hit multi-month lows on Wednesday.
Wheat: July SRW futures rallied 16 1/2 cents before settling at $6.10 3/4. July HRW futures rallied 12 cents to $8.02 1/2, settling in the middle of today’s range. July HRS futures closed 9 cents higher at $7.89. Wheat futures managed to continue yesterday’s reversal from recent lows, but bulls were still unable to overcome initial resistance despite surging soybean and crude oil markets.
Cotton: July cotton closed up 294 points at 86.42 cents and nearer the session high. The cotton futures market was boosted today by a solid rally in the crude oil futures market, good gains in the U.S. stock indexes and a big drop in the U.S. dollar index.
Cattle: Live cattle futures rocketed higher Thursday, with the nearby June contract soaring $5.775 to $174.925 and most-active August leaping $4.70 to $172.425. August feeder futures jumped $2.475 to $241.65. Continued wholesale beef strength seems to be translating into resurgent gains in the live cattle and futures markets.
Hogs: June lean hogs rallied 97.5 cents today to settle at $83.55, despite deferred contract weakness, as evidenced by the August contract closing $1.825 lower to $80.025. Hog futures finished the session mixed after the past few days of strong gains, unable to piggyback gains from the surging cattle market.