GRAINS:
May corn closed up 5 1/4 cents and July corn was up 5 cents. May soybeans closed down 2 1/4 cents and July soybeans were down 3/4 cents. May KC wheat closed down 1 cents, May Chicago wheat was down 2 3/4 cents, May Minneapolis wheat was down 1 1/4 cents.
For the week:
May corn closed down 1/4 cents and July corn was unchanged. May soybeans closed down 3/4 cents and July soybeans were down 1 1/4 cents. May KC wheat closed down 8 1/4 cents, May Chicago wheat was down 4 1/2 cents and May Minneapolis wheat was down 5 cents.
Soy and wheat markets were slightly slower while corn futures pushed higher to close a week of price action that was very ugly at the front end, followed by recovery sessions on Wednesday and Thursday. Friday was a comparatively quieter day in terms of trade news, as Thursday's tariff rollbacks are currently being viewed with mixed feelings. On one hand, the step in the right direction toward a long-term solution for trade between the U.S. and Canada has reassured some traders. On the other hand, there is certainly a sense of frustration that the current compromise is simply yet another month-long delay in tariffs rather than a longer-term deal. This has investors very nervous that the market will be put through the same whipsaw action in three to four weeks. This is evident in the response of equity markets over the past 24 hours, where indices are struggling to gain upward traction to end the week.
LIVESTOCK:
The market may have been stalemated throughout Thursday's trade as traders were waiting to see what direction the fed cash cattle market was going to trade. The wait was worth it. With all of the live cattle contracts trading dollars higher, traders are elated to again advance the contracts amid support from the cash cattle complex as Northern dressed cattle are traded at $315, which is $2.00 higher than last week's weighted average. The fundamental support from the cash sector has helped the spot April contract again conquer its 40-day moving average, which is a significant technical threshold.
Thanks to the added support of the live cattle complex and the higher trade in the Northern fed cash cattle market, the feeder cattle contracts traded higher too. And so long as the support doesn't diminish and leave the live cattle contracts, the feeder cattle market should be able to maintain this momentum.
The lean hog complex traded higher as the market is pleased with the week's developments. With the delay in tariffs against Mexico and Canada for another month, Thursday's strong export report and today's higher pork cutout values -- the market possessed all the support it could hope for.
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