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Most fields east of the Mississippi River will see variable rainfall between Saturday and Tuesday, ranging between trace amounts to 0.75” or more during this time, per the latest 72-hour cumulative precipitation map from NOAA. Later on, NOAA’s new 8-to-14-day outlook predicts warmer- and wetter-than-normal conditions likely for a sizable portion of the central U.S. between March 28 and April 3.
On Wall St., the Dow tilted 80 points lower in afternoon trading to 41,873 and the S&P 500 is in danger of posting its fifth consecutive losing week due to trade war threats and the possibility of the country slumping into a recession. Energy futures made modest inroads, with crude oil up around 0.25% this afternoon, staying above $68 per barrel. Gasoline also tested modest gains. The U.S. Dollar firmed moderately.
On Thursday, commodity funds were net buyers of corn (+10,500), soybeans (+4,000) and soyoil (+3,500) contracts but were net sellers of soymeal (-2,000) and CBOT wheat (-1,500).
Corn prices continued to erode lower
A selloff heading into the weekend was seen by some as a way to hedge against any volatile trade war stories that may come out over the weekend. May futures dropped 6 cents to $4.63, with July futures down 5 cents to $4.7050.
Corn basis bids shifted 2 cents lower at an Illinois processor while trending 2 cents higher at four other Midwestern locations on Friday.
Is it time to adopt a “five percenter” management mindset? David Kohl, professor emeritus with Virginia Tech University, argues that this approach can improve the odds for success at any business. “The time-tested performers are very balanced, resilient, and nimble,” he says. “This mindset does not involve doing one component especially well, but many components just a little bit better in your business year-over-year or compared to the competition.” Click here to learn more.
Meantime, if you haven’t renewed your farm insurance policy lately, now is a good time to do so, according to Mike Wilson, Farm Progress senior executive editor. He points to Iowa farmer Mike Dahl as one anecdote, who read the fine print in his policy after his premiums nearly doubled. That kind of sticker shock would have most farmers paying closer attention, admittedly! Click here to learn more.
Corn settlements on Thursday were for 437,614 contracts.
Soybean prices faced modest cuts on Friday
Prices continue to face pressure from Brazil’s record-breaking harvest, which is speeding towards the finish line. A resolution to a worker strike in Argentina also generated some headwinds today. May futures dropped 3 cents to $10.10, with July futures down 4 cents to $10.2125.
The rest of the soy complex was mixed. May soymeal futures trended almost 1% higher, while May soyoil futures slumped more than 1.5% lower.
Soybean basis bids held steady across the central U.S. on Friday.
China’s state grain stockpiler Sinograin will auction 5.9 million bushels of soybeans in its first sale since January to ease tight supplies that caused several processors to shutter production. The auction will be held next Tuesday, with deliveries between April 1 and May 15.
Workers on strike at several Argentina soybean processing plants returned to work after a wage dispute was resolved. “We are willing to work as long as we get paid,” according to SOEA Secretary Martin Morales, referencing overdue wages that were owed the workers. Argentina is among the world’s top soybean and soymeal exporters.
Soybean settlements on Thursday were for 206,535 contracts.
Wheat prices found limited bargain-buying
Prices have been hit hard in recent sessions, prompting a bit of technical selling on Friday. However, some uneven technical maneuvering still left spring wheat prices slightly in the red today. May Chicago SRW futures inched a penny higher to $5.5825, May Kansas City HRW futures added 2.75 cents to $5.8925, and May MGEX spring wheat futures eased 0.25 cents lower to $6.0450.
French farm office FranceAgriMer estimates that 74% of the country’s 2024/25 soft wheat crop is rated in good-to-excellent condition through March 17, which is steady from the prior week’s rating and favorable to year-ago ratings of 66%. France is Europe’s No. 1 grain producer.
Turkey issued an international tender to sell and export 1.8 million bushels of durum wheat. Offers can be submitted through March 27, and the grain is for shipment between April 24 and May 15.
And finally, we reported on this earlier in the week, but it bears mentioning again – the USDA just released $10 billion in relief funding for farmers, with a sign-up period beginning on March 19. Click here to learn more and find out if you qualify for a piece of that pie.
CBOT wheat settlements on Thursday were for 108,887 contracts.