GRAINS:
May corn closed down 4 3/4 cents and July corn was down 4 cents. May soybeans closed down 3 1/4 cents and July soybeans were down 3 3/4 cents. May KC wheat closed up 2 1/4 cents, May Chicago wheat was up 1 cent, May Minneapolis wheat was up 1/4 cents.
For the week:
May corn closed up 5 3/4 cents and July corn was up 4 cents. May soybeans closed down 6 1/4 cents and July soybeans were down 8 1/2 cents. May KC wheat closed up 2 3/4 cents, May Chicago wheat was up 1 1/4 cents and May Minneapolis wheat was up 3 1/4 cents.
If I could only choose one word to describe this week's grain trade, "uninspired" may be the choice, as markets were unable to move convincingly in either direction as traders await more fundamental clues from the government. Corn and soybean markets finished the week on a sour note as neither were able to build off Thursday's upward momentum and instead erased those gains to close the week. Meanwhile wheat futures found some stability to close the week, with KC contracts managing to hold to meager gains following a two-day selloff which put wheat prices more or less back to where they finished last week. Outside markets Friday leaned negative as stock indices are lower as growth concerns which echoed through the markets in the aftermath of Wednesday's Fed announcement have worn on investors' minds to close the week. On the other hand, the U.S. Dollar Index has found a three-day rally to close the week, as the steady downtrend for the currency since mid-January has seemingly stabilized for now ahead of the next tariff deadline on April 2.
LIVESTOCK:
After an incredible week of near non-stop upward momentum, the live cattle complex seems to be holding its breath or pausing its nearly unfathomable rally and is patiently waiting to see what the Cattle on Feed (COF) Report yields. Regardless of what the COF report shows, one could argue that the rally in this week's fed cash cattle market will overpower whatever the COF report details. The fed cash cattle market's movement has been thin, but prices have been hot. So far, Southern live cattle are trading at mostly $210, which is $7 higher than last week's weighted average. Northern dressed cattle are trading at $212 to $214, which is $3 to $5 higher than last week's weighted average. It's rather incredible that on a week when throughput has been reduced because of weather conditions, that packers are still willing to advance the cash market $3 to $7 higher to ensure they have enough supply moving forward. Well done feedlot managers, well done!
Even though fed cash cattle prices are trading higher, traders are reluctant to advance the feeder cattle complex without the support of the live cattle contracts. Friday's weaker technical performance isn't due to any fundamental rhyme or reason, but rather because traders are questioning how much higher the market can actually trade, and as they wait to see what this afternoon's Cattle on Feed report unveils.
After a challenging week, the lean hog complex has finally found some support as its contracts traded higher into Friday's closing bell. It is helpful that again Friday, pork cutout values are higher, which is stemming from a healthy blend of higher prices across nearly all the cuts.
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