Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle surged to contract highs on Thursday and closed up the daily limit in most contacts on stronger-than-expected cash markets and robust demand for beef, traders said. The front-month contract hit a 13-month peak as the market closed higher for the fifteenth time in 16 sessions. April […] Read more
U.S. livestock: Cattle rise as cash prices surge
U.S. grains: Corn, soy gain on planting delays, relief over NAFTA
Chicago | Reuters — Chicago corn and soybean futures edged higher on Thursday on concerns about weather delays to spring planting and relief that the White House will not immediately withdraw the U.S. from the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). Solid export sales added support, although both commodities traded lower at times as mild […] Read more
U.S. livestock: Lean hogs surge on stocks data, strong pork demand
Chicago/Reuters – Chicago Mercantile Exchange lean hog futures climbed for a second day on Tuesday, with some contracts surging more than 3 percent, on bullish pork stocks data and seasonal buying, traders said. Prices climbed from the opening bell as the U.S. Department of Agriculture reported tighter-than-anticipated U.S. stocks of frozen pork and the tightest […] Read more
U.S. grains: Corn jumps as rains seen stalling U.S. planting progress
Chicago/Reuters – U.S. corn futures rose for a second straight session on Tuesday on a slower-than-average start to planting in the United States and forecasts for Midwest rains that will stall further progress. Soybean prices retreated after hitting a three-week high in the previous day as government data showed a faster-than-expected pace of new crop […] Read more
U.S. livestock: Live cattle drop from one-year peak, hogs rise
Chicago/Reuters – Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle fell on Monday in a profit-taking setback after notching one-year highs for four straight days last week, traders said. Larger-than-expected cattle placements in a monthly government report issued after the market closed on Friday added pressure to start the week, with deferred contracts posting the steepest declines. “The […] Read more
U.S. grains: Soybeans rise on dollar weakness, short-covering
Chicago/Reuters – Chicago soybean futures rose for a second session on Monday, touching a three-week high on short-covering, and as a weaker U.S. dollar raised hopes for fresh export sales. Corn futures edged higher on support from fund short-covering and worries over a slow start to spring planting, while wheat declined on abundant stocks. The […] Read more
Cargill’s Q3 profit up on ingredient, protein demand
Chicago | Reuters — Global commodities trader Cargill reported a higher quarterly profit on Wednesday as strong earnings from its food ingredients and protein units more than offset lagging results from South American grain trading and processing. The privately held company has been streamlining its operations to focus on higher-margin businesses such as food ingredients […] Read more
U.S. grains: Soy, corn sink to new lows on plentiful supplies
Chicago | Reuters — U.S. soybean futures fell to a five-month low on Thursday and corn dropped to a 2-1/2 month low, pressured by plentiful global supplies amid bumper South American crops and expectations for large plantings in the U.S. The actively traded May-delivery contracts for both commodities hit their lowest levels of 2017. “The […] Read more
U.S. livestock: Live cattle sink on technical selling
Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures eased on Monday on profit-taking and technical selling, although losses were limited by firm wholesale beef prices and the discount of futures to cash prices, traders said. April live cattle closed down 0.425 cent/lb. to 115.55 cents, slipping below the contract’s 50-day moving average around […] Read more
Barge glut chokes U.S. shipping sector despite record harvest
Chicago | Reuters — A glut of idled river barges is clogging Mississippi River shorelines from St. Louis to New Orleans, leaving U.S. barge companies that haul grain, coal and other bulk goods counting their losses. Even with record-large exports of corn and soybeans, typically a boon for shippers that haul grain to Gulf Coast […] Read more