Good morning!
Varied price tone in grains overnight... Soybean futures firmed amid corrective buying overnight, while wheat declined and corn chopped around unchanged. As of 6:30 a.m. CT, corn futures are trading a penny lower, soybeans are 4 to 7 cents higher and wheat futures are mostly 5 to 9 cents lower. Front-month crude oil futures are nearly $2.00 lower and the U.S. dollar index is 275 points lower.
Historic vote removes Kevin McCarthy as House Speaker... The House voted to remove Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) from the position of House Speaker, marking the only time in history a speaker has been removed by their colleagues and the first vote on ousting a speaker since 1910. Eight Republicans joined all Democrats in supporting McCarthy’s removal. The absence of a House Speaker will lead to a stall in legislative business until a replacement is elected. Bottom line: This raises fresh attention to the dysfunction in Washington and made clear the GOP’s rebel right wing will not tolerate leaders who compromise with President Joe Biden and his party. Congress faces another deadline by Nov. 17 to avert a government shutdown. While farm bill deliberations and staff work can continue, the timeline of any floor action becomes murkier – and it wasn’t that clear before the latest GOP chaos.
Biden reassures allies of continued U.S. support for Ukraine despite funding bill omission... President Joe Biden held a telephone call with nearly a dozen foreign leaders to reaffirm the United States’ commitment to supporting Ukraine amidst concerns over the omission of $6 billion in aid from a government funding bill. The White House stated that Biden assured these allies the U.S. would stand by Ukraine in defending its sovereignty and territorial integrity. The call included leaders such as UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, Polish President Andrzej Duda, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, among others. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida were also part of the conversation.
More ships headed to Ukrainian ports... Ukraine’s navy said 12 more cargo vessels were ready to enter its Black Sea humanitarian shipping corridor on their way to Ukrainian ports to be loaded. It was uncertain when the vessels would be loaded with grain and scheduled to set sail to their destinations.
Philippines lifts rice price cap... Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. lifted an order capping rice prices the government imposed last month to rein in the rising cost of a national staple. The Philippines has adequate rice supplies, said Marcos, who is also the country’s ag secretary.
Malaysia wants ASEAN rice suppliers to prioritize members... Malaysia will call on the main rice supplying nations of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to prioritize the bloc’s member countries amid concerns over rising prices and supply shortages, state news agency Bernama reported. Malaysia may hold talks with Thailand or Vietnam – the world’s second and third largest rice exporters behind India – on rice supplies, a senior ag ministry official said.
Euro zone producer prices post record decline in August... Producer prices in the euro zone fell 11.5% annually in August, following a 7.6% decrease in the previous month, which marked the steepest decline in producer prices on record, driven by tumbling costs for both energy (-30.6% vs. -24.2% in July) and intermediate goods (-4.5% vs -4.0%). On a monthly basis producer prices rose 0.6%, ending a seven-month string of declines.
Euro zone continues to contract... HCOB’s final composite purchasing managers index (PMI) compiled by S&P Global came in at 47.2 in September, which was little changed from the preliminary estimate of 47.1 and above August’s near three-year low of 46.7. However, the latest reading indicated a further moderate contraction in business activity levels across the bloc’s private sector economy, with both manufacturing and services output declining.
China criticizes EU’s investigation into tariffs on Chinese EVs... China voiced its discontent with the European Union’s inquiry into imposing tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles (EVs), alleging the bloc lacks substantial evidence to warrant such an investigation. China’s commerce ministry further contends the request for consultations was made with inadequate notice, posing a risk to the country’s rights in this matter.
Wholesale beef can’t get traction... Choice boxed beef prices dropped $3.01 to $300.07, while Select fell $1.39 to $275.39 on Tuesday. Movement improved to 130 loads, signaling there’s still solid retailer demand under the market, but packers have struggled to push prices higher. With cutting margins in the red and fresh contract cattle supplies available, packers will be reluctant to raise cash cattle bids.
Cash hog, wholesale pork prices continue to slide... The CME lean hog index is down another 29 cents to $84.55 (as of Oct. 2), sending clearer signals an extended seasonal downturn is underway. Wholesale pork prices are also declining seasonally, falling another $1.43 to $94.61 on Tuesday.
Overnight demand news... Exporters reported no tenders or sales.
See ‘Policy Updates’ for late-breaking morning news updates... For updates to items in “First Thing Today” or any late-breaking morning news stories, check “Policy Updates” on www.profarmer.com.
Today’s reports
- 9:30 a.m. Weekly Ethanol Production — EIA
- 2:00 p.m. Broiler Hatchery — NASS
- 2:00 p.m. Dairy Products — NASS