By: NATHAN STUEDLE
GRAINS:
July corn closed up 3 3/4 cents and December corn was up 4 cents. July soybeans closed up 15 3/4 cents and November soybeans were up 16 cents. July KC wheat closed up 8 1/2 cents, July Chicago wheat was up 6 3/4 cents and July Minneapolis wheat was up 4 3/4 cents.
Despite President Trump stating on Thursday that the now almost month-old cease-fire with Iran remains in effect, the U.S. and Iran reportedly launched a series of attacks on Friday, with the U.S. striking two empty Iranian oil tankers. Crude oil futures were relatively muted in response, though WTI futures appear on pace to snap a three-day lower streak, the first such occurrence since the war began in late February. Otherwise, soybean futures led row crops to close the week, with traders likely inspired by Thursday's bounce from technical support ahead of President Trump's pivotal visit to China, now just a week away. Corn and wheat markets followed suit in an overall day of recovery after sharp moves lower through mid-week.
LIVESTOCK:
It was a day of back-and-forth trading. Initially, the live cattle complex was trading higher as traders seemed to acknowledge the strong fundamental support of this week's cash market -- but lo and behold -- that train of thought obviously didn't last long, heading into the closing bell, the contracts ended trading lower. More than anything, the last two days have been a prime example of algorithm trading, which can lead the market in the exact opposite direction compared to what the market's fundamental influences would encourage. So far this week, Northern dressed cattle have traded at mostly $402, which is $3.00 higher than last week's weighted average. Southern live cattle have been marked at mostly $256 to $257, which is $2.00 to $3.00 higher than the previous week's weighted average.
The feeder cattle complex was also trading lower into Friday's closing bell, the market continues to closely track and follow the direction of the live cattle complex. It's disappointing to see both the live cattle and feeder cattle contracts trading lower when the market's fundamentals are strong, but unfortunately, the market's technical influence seems to hold more power this week.
The lean hog complex traded mixed for the bulk of Friday's session, with a few of the deferred months trading higher, but by and large the complex was traded mostly lower. It is worth noting that demand is strong as pork cutout values were up over $2.00 this morning, but with that support coming late in the week, it's unlikely to make a significant impact.