CBOT Closing Comments
Soybeans
July soybeans closed at USD9.35, down 20 cents; July soybean meal closed at USD277.20, down USD6.80; July soybean oil closed at 36.78, down 88 cents. Export sales were dismal at 148,142 MT, with no sign of China. Reports suggest that their recent heavy import program is causing severe congestion at some Chinese ports, leading to orders being cancelled or rolled forward. Actual shipments this week were only 149,100 MT, although export business is still running ahead of last year by 6.97 MMT. The firm dollar and weak crude oil market spurred the anticipated surge in pre-weekend selling.
Corn
July corn closed at USD3.40, down 9 1/2 cents; Dec corn closed at USD3.59 1/2, up 10 3/4 cents. Export sales were only 313,047 MT for both marketing years against expectations of around 1 MMT. The recent interest from China seems to have disappeared as quickly as it arrived, at least for now. Early growing conditions in teh US look pretty ideal with warm and wet the order of the day. The USDA will report on plantings and crop conditions Monday night. Just about all the crop is expected to have been planted now, and conditions may have improved even further after last week's 5 percentage point leap pegged 76% of the crop rated good/excellent.
Wheat
July CBOT wheat closed at USD4.35 3/4, down 6 cents; July KCBT wheat closed at USD4.65, down 6 1/2 cents; July MGEX wheat closed at USD4.92 3/4, down 5 cents. Wheat set fresh contract lows today, with July CBOT wheat slumping to the lowest price for a front-month contract since last September. Export sales were a bit below expectations at 241,076 MT with old crop wheat sales coming in negative at -53,200 MT for the last week of the 2009/10 marketing year. The harvest is in full swing in the Southern Plains and likely to move into the top producing state of Kansas any day now, so we will soon know what effect stripe rust might have had on yields.
July soybeans closed at USD9.35, down 20 cents; July soybean meal closed at USD277.20, down USD6.80; July soybean oil closed at 36.78, down 88 cents. Export sales were dismal at 148,142 MT, with no sign of China. Reports suggest that their recent heavy import program is causing severe congestion at some Chinese ports, leading to orders being cancelled or rolled forward. Actual shipments this week were only 149,100 MT, although export business is still running ahead of last year by 6.97 MMT. The firm dollar and weak crude oil market spurred the anticipated surge in pre-weekend selling.
Corn
July corn closed at USD3.40, down 9 1/2 cents; Dec corn closed at USD3.59 1/2, up 10 3/4 cents. Export sales were only 313,047 MT for both marketing years against expectations of around 1 MMT. The recent interest from China seems to have disappeared as quickly as it arrived, at least for now. Early growing conditions in teh US look pretty ideal with warm and wet the order of the day. The USDA will report on plantings and crop conditions Monday night. Just about all the crop is expected to have been planted now, and conditions may have improved even further after last week's 5 percentage point leap pegged 76% of the crop rated good/excellent.
Wheat
July CBOT wheat closed at USD4.35 3/4, down 6 cents; July KCBT wheat closed at USD4.65, down 6 1/2 cents; July MGEX wheat closed at USD4.92 3/4, down 5 cents. Wheat set fresh contract lows today, with July CBOT wheat slumping to the lowest price for a front-month contract since last September. Export sales were a bit below expectations at 241,076 MT with old crop wheat sales coming in negative at -53,200 MT for the last week of the 2009/10 marketing year. The harvest is in full swing in the Southern Plains and likely to move into the top producing state of Kansas any day now, so we will soon know what effect stripe rust might have had on yields.