As of 6:30 a.m. CT, soybeans were trading 8 to 9 cents lower, corn futures were 1 to 2 cents lower, SRW wheat futures were fractionally to a penny higher, HRW wheat was around 4 cents higher and spring wheat was narrowly mixed. Front-month crude oil futures were around 25 cents lower and the U.S. dollar index is near unchanged this morning.
Following are highlights from USDA’s crop progress and condition update for the week ended Nov. 21.
- Corn: 95% harvested (92% on average)
- Soybeans: 95% harvested (96%)
- Cotton: 75% harvested (71%)
- Winter wheat: 96% planted (97%), 86% emerged (87%), 44% “good” to “excellent” (46% last week)
The White House announced this morning it would make 50 million barrels of oil available from the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR). The release was made concert with other releases from strategic reserves by China, India, South Korea, Japan and Great Britain.
Crop Consultant Dr. Michael Cordonnier left his Brazilian soybean crop estimate unchanged, but his bias changed to neutral from neutral to slightly higher due to a drier forecast for southern Brazil. Cordonnier also left his Brazilian corn crop estimate unchanged and has a neutral bias.
Investors are betting on a quicker withdrawal of monetary stimulus and there are growing ideas the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates sooner than many reckoned just a few weeks ago. During his speech on Monday after being renominated for Fed chair by President Joe Biden, Jerome Powell said the Fed will focus on fighting inflation.
U.S. gas prices averaged $3.40 per gallon on Monday, up $1.30 from last year, according to GasBuddy. Its survey found 32% of Americans plan to travel this Thanksgiving, with 13% of that number expecting to spend up to three hours in the car.
Europe is growing increasingly reliant on coal to keep the lights on as the weather turns cold, sending the cost of polluting to a record. Carbon prices exceeded 70 euros for the first time ever as utilities turn to coal.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) asked the Justice Department to open an antitrust investigation into the poultry industry as turkey prices soar ahead of Thanksgiving.
After aggressively buying cattle the past three weeks, packers’ willingness to raise cash bids again may be limited, though market-ready supplies are tightening.
Weak cash fundamentals will likely limit any followthrough buying in hog futures and may trigger a fresh wave of selling.