GRAIN CALLS
Corn: 4 to 6 cents higher.
Soybeans: 14 to 17 cents higher.
Wheat: Steady to 2 cents higher.
GENERAL COMMENTS: Corn and soybeans led strength overnight and went into the break on session highs. Wheat traded near unchanged though saw some spillover strength this morning. Front-month crude oil futures are trading mostly lower while the U.S. dollar index is around 200 points higher.
USDA reported daily sales of 132,000 MT of soybeans for delivery to China and 100,000 MT of soybean cake and meal for delivery to Colombia, each during the 2024-25 marketing year.
The core personal consumption expenditure price index (PCE), the Federal Reserves preferred gauge to measure inflation, rose by 0.2% from the previous month in July, in line with market expectations. Annual core PCE rose 2.6%, below expectations of 2.7%. Inflation continuing to downtick further affirms the Fed’s ability to cut interest rates in their upcoming September meeting.
Grain and livestock markets will trade normal hours today ahead of the extended holiday weekend. All markets and government offices are closed on Monday, Sept. 2, for Labor Day. There will be no Pro Farmer market updates on Monday. Grain markets resume trade on Monday, Sept. 2, at 7:00 p.m. CT with the overnight session. Livestock markets reopen at 8:30 a.m. CT on Tuesday, Sept. 3. Have a happy and safe holiday weekend.
Indonesia seeks to import another 900,000 metric tons of rice until the end of this year amid expectations of lower output and delayed planting season, the country’s food procurement company Bulog said. As of Aug. 30, Bulog has contracted 2.7 MMT of rice imports of the allocated quota of 3.6 MMT for this year.
In its first outlook for 2024-25 (October-September), the International Sugar Organization (ISO) forecast there would be a global sugar deficit of 3.58 MMT. ISO sharply reduced its forecast for the 2023-24 deficit to 200,000 MT from 2.95 MMT in its June update, noting Brazil’s center-south region “shifted more output into the pre-October window,” which will leave 2024-25 with a larger deficit.
CORN: December corn futures challenged psychological $4.00 resistance overnight. Further strength seeks to challenge resistance at $4.03 3/4. Support stems from the 10-day moving average at $3.95 then $3.92 1/2.
SOYBEANS: November soybean futures surged above resistance overnight. Bulls are seeking to hold prices above the psychological $10.00 mark which is reinforced by support at $9.94. Further strength seeks to overcome the 40-day moving average at $10.22.
WHEAT: December SRW futures traded narrowly near unchanged most of the overnight session. Stiff resistance remains at $5.52, a close above which would negate the downtrend stemming back from mid-July. Support lies at $5.43 3/4 then $5.39 1/2 on a reversal lower.
LIVESTOCK CALLS
CATTLE: Choppy/lower.
HOGS: Choppy/lower.
CATTLE: Live cattle futures and feeders are expected to open with a mostly weaker tone, continuing to pull back from highs earlier this week. Weaker cash cattle trade likely weighed heavily on futures Thursday as trade got underway at mostly $1.00 to $2.00 lower prices midweek. While sales activity was light, weaker trade sets the tone for lower cash cattle prices for a fifth consecutive week. Wholesale beef ended Thursday mixed as Choice cutout firmed $1.37 to $308.66 while Select sunk $1.44 to $296.19.
HOGS: Lean hog futures are expected to open with a mostly weaker tone as technical resistance continues to loom over the market. October futures have struggled to overcome Tuesday’s high though the downside has been largely limited. Seasonal weakness is likely to weigh on prices as well, as the CME lean hog index is down another 41 cents to $87.04 as of Aug. 28. October hogs finished Thursday $4.865 below today’s cash quote, which is less than the five-year average decline of $7.28 from now until mid-October. Pork cutout firmed 61 cents to $95.89 Thursday, though movement remained relatively light at 249.6 loads.