Corn: May corn futures closed 15 1/4 cents higher to $4.42, gaining 2 3/4 cents on the week. Corn futures surged in the wake of this morning’s reports, negating losses seen earlier this week.
Soybeans: May soybeans fell a penny to $11.91 1/2 and ironically lost 1 cent on the week. May soymeal fell $1.30 to $337.70 and ended $1.40 lower from a week ago. May soyoil rose 28 points to 47.95 cents and gained 31 points on the week. While corn bulls stole the show today, soybeans mustered a rally from early session lows but continued to face headwinds at the psychological $12.00 area.
Wheat: May SRW wheat futures rose 12 3/4 cents to $5.60 1/4, near mid-range and on the week down 5 1/2 cents. May HRW wheat gained 7 cents to $5.85 1/4, near mid-range and for the week down 5 1/4 cents. May spring wheat fell 4 1/2 cents to $6.46 1/2 but rose 5 1/2 cents on the week. Solid gains in corn futures today supported the wheat markets.
Cotton: May cotton rose 61 points to 91.38 points but fell 15 points on the week. Cotton remained rather subdued on such a historically volatile trading day.
Cattle: June live cattle futures rose $1.575 to $180.25 and near the session high. For the week, June cattle fell $2.65. May feeder cattle futures gained 42 1/2 cents to $248.70, nearer the session high and for the week down $5.075. The cattle futures bears had the better holiday-shortened week, which means the bulls need to step up and show power early next week to avoid more significant near-term technical damage.
Hogs: Hog futures continued their seasonal advance again Thursday, with nearby April surging 52.5 cents to $86.625. Most-active June skid 15 cents to $101.45, but today’s close represented a $1.75 weekly advance. Next week’s market action will be greatly affected by the results of this afternoon’s (2:00 pm CDT) release of the USDA’s quarterly Hogs & Pigs report, since it will hold major implications for spring and summer hog supplies.