CBOT Closing Comments
Soybeans
May soybeans ended 27 cents lower at $9.17 on book-squaring ahead of the weekend and Tuesday's USDA report. Argentine farmers are expected to end their one week strike over the weekend and resume sales of grains, oilseeds and livestock on Monday. The market is seeing that as bearish. I think that they market should be considering that this is probably just the first strike of many, and if I was an international buyer of soybeans I wouldn't want to be booking anything with Argentina at the moment. Bunge apparently claimed force majuere on contracts out of Argentina last week, according to media reports. The Chinese government is said to be planning to release half a million tonnes of soybeans from it's strategic reserve onto the domestic market, which may curb their enthusiasm for buying US beans for a week or two.
Tuesday's USDA report is expected to show US farmers planting 79.251 million acres of soybeans this spring (around 3.5 million more than in 2008). It is worth noting the rather large spread in estimates: 75.9-81.5 million. It is also worth noting that US farmers have planted less soybeans that the March intentions report in eight of the last ten years.
Corn
May corn was down 3 3/4 cents to $3.87 per bushel pressured by a stronger dollar and weak crude oil. May crude lost $2.11/barrel on the day. South Korean buyers bought 275,000mt of corn overnight, much of it US origin, which added some support ahead of next week's planting intentions and stocks reports from the USDA. Wet weather across much of the Midwest may delay plantings a little. Corn seed sales are reported to be holding up well, fostering ideas that we won't see a large cut in plantings this spring.
The average trade guess for Tuesday's USDA report is 84.548 million acres, as with soybeans there is quite a wide discrepancy between the highest & lowest estimates: 81.4-89.0 million is the range, compared to just shy of 86 million last year. US farmers have planted more acres than the USDA's March report in seven of the last ten seasons.
Wheat
May CBOT wheat settled at $5.07 1/4, down 7 1/4 cents. Profit-taking, a firmer dollar, weak crude and lower equities all conspired to drag wheat into negative territory. Nobody seems to be able to make sense of the weather in the US at the moment, we've had a drought in the Plains, yet flooding in North Dakota. It's too wet in the east & the north and too dry in the south and the west. North Dakota, which has been declared a national disaster zone by President Obama, produces around half of all US spring wheat.
Tuesday's USDA report is expected to show all wheat acres at 58.856 million, over 4 million down on 2008.
May soybeans ended 27 cents lower at $9.17 on book-squaring ahead of the weekend and Tuesday's USDA report. Argentine farmers are expected to end their one week strike over the weekend and resume sales of grains, oilseeds and livestock on Monday. The market is seeing that as bearish. I think that they market should be considering that this is probably just the first strike of many, and if I was an international buyer of soybeans I wouldn't want to be booking anything with Argentina at the moment. Bunge apparently claimed force majuere on contracts out of Argentina last week, according to media reports. The Chinese government is said to be planning to release half a million tonnes of soybeans from it's strategic reserve onto the domestic market, which may curb their enthusiasm for buying US beans for a week or two.
Tuesday's USDA report is expected to show US farmers planting 79.251 million acres of soybeans this spring (around 3.5 million more than in 2008). It is worth noting the rather large spread in estimates: 75.9-81.5 million. It is also worth noting that US farmers have planted less soybeans that the March intentions report in eight of the last ten years.
Corn
May corn was down 3 3/4 cents to $3.87 per bushel pressured by a stronger dollar and weak crude oil. May crude lost $2.11/barrel on the day. South Korean buyers bought 275,000mt of corn overnight, much of it US origin, which added some support ahead of next week's planting intentions and stocks reports from the USDA. Wet weather across much of the Midwest may delay plantings a little. Corn seed sales are reported to be holding up well, fostering ideas that we won't see a large cut in plantings this spring.
The average trade guess for Tuesday's USDA report is 84.548 million acres, as with soybeans there is quite a wide discrepancy between the highest & lowest estimates: 81.4-89.0 million is the range, compared to just shy of 86 million last year. US farmers have planted more acres than the USDA's March report in seven of the last ten seasons.
Wheat
May CBOT wheat settled at $5.07 1/4, down 7 1/4 cents. Profit-taking, a firmer dollar, weak crude and lower equities all conspired to drag wheat into negative territory. Nobody seems to be able to make sense of the weather in the US at the moment, we've had a drought in the Plains, yet flooding in North Dakota. It's too wet in the east & the north and too dry in the south and the west. North Dakota, which has been declared a national disaster zone by President Obama, produces around half of all US spring wheat.
Tuesday's USDA report is expected to show all wheat acres at 58.856 million, over 4 million down on 2008.
