(Photo courtesy Canada Beef Inc.)

Feed weekly outlook: Corn the choice crop in feedlots

'Bigger feedlots are looking for volume'

MarketsFarm — Copious amounts of corn are still being delivered to feedlots in southern Alberta despite slowly declining prices for other feed grains. “Corn is coming down over the last little bit,” Mike Fleischhauer of Eagle Commodities Ltd. in Lethbridge said. “You think that there would be a little bit more barley hitting the market. […] Read more

CBOT May 2023 corn with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. grains: Chicago corn dampened by prediction of El Nino rain

Black Sea export deal hopes drag wheat to 18-month low

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago corn futures hit their lowest price since August on Thursday on expectations that the El Nino climate phenomenon could boost U.S. crops and concerns about rising interest rates. La Nina has ended, the National Weather Service’s Climate Prediction Center said on Thursday, and El Niño could possibly form during summer […] Read more


CME April 2023 feeder cattle with 20-day moving average (black line, right column) and CBOT May 2023 corn (orange line, left column). (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: CME feeder cattle pull back

CME lean hogs end day mixed

Chicago | Reuters — Feeder cattle futures on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange on Thursday ended lower on Thursday as the front-month contract pulled back from its highest prices in nearly 7-1/2 years. Traders took some profits after futures rallied recently on falling corn prices, brokers said, adding that continued declines in the corn market could […] Read more

A dried-out corn crop next to cotton planted into a dried-out cornfield at Tostado in Argentina’s northern Santa Fe province, on Feb. 8, 2023. (Photo: Reuters/Miguel Lo Bianco)

CBOT weekly outlook: Argentina estimates lowered, but attention soon shifting north

U.S. corn, soyoil export outlooks 'a little concerning'

MarketsFarm — Sizeable reductions to Argentina’s soybean and corn crops were confirmed in the latest supply/demand estimates (WASDE) from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, with more reductions likely in future reports. However, attention in the markets is starting to shift to North American weather, with spring seeding just around the corner. “The USDA was a […] Read more


CBOT May 2023 soft red winter wheat with Bollinger bands (20,2). (Barchart)

U.S. grains: Wheat at 18-month low on Black Sea deal hope

Soybeans boosted by slash to Argentina harvest

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago wheat futures on Wednesday fell to their lowest point in 18 months on expectations for a Black Sea grains deal and continued poor demand for U.S. exports. “Wheat was down most of the day, initially on talk of corridor extension talks, then off a lackluster WASDE report,” Charlie Sernatinger of […] Read more

CME March 2023 feeder cattle with Bollinger bands (20,2). (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: Feeder cattle highest since 2015 as corn sags

Live cattle mixed, hogs mostly higher

Chicago | Reuters — Front-month feeder cattle futures on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange hit the highest in nearly 7-1/2 years on Wednesday as falling prices for corn signaled cheaper feed costs, traders said. CME April feeder cattle futures settled up 1.4 cents at 200.075 cents/lb. after setting a life-of-contract high of 200.225 cents (all figures […] Read more


Corn in progress just east of Blumenort, Man. on July 20, 2022. (Dave Bedard photo)

Canada reported seeking formal talks with Mexico on GMO rule

U.S. already seeking similar talks

Ottawa | Reuters — Canada has asked for formal consultations with Mexico over its restrictions on genetically modified (GM) agricultural imports under the North American free-trade agreement, Bloomberg News reported Wednesday, citing people familiar with the matter. Canada requested the talks on Tuesday, according to Bloomberg, a day after the U.S. requested formal trade consultations […] Read more

CBOT May 2023 soft red winter wheat with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. grains: Wheat rebounds off 17-month low

USDA's new WASDE awaited

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago wheat futures edged higher on Tuesday, consolidating above a 17-month low as the market assessed mixed growing conditions in the U.S. Plains and awaited further direction from U.S. government crop forecasts. Prices were rebounding after dipping below $7 a bushel, Don Roose, president of U.S. Commodities in West Des Moines, […] Read more


CME April 2023 feeder cattle with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: CME feeder cattle climb to another contract high

April live cattle lower, lean hogs up

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange feeder cattle futures reached a contract high for a second consecutive session on Tuesday, while live cattle futures retreated from a contract high set a day earlier, brokers said. Reduced U.S. herd sizes due to drought have propelled futures higher recently, though some brokers said supply concerns have […] Read more

Around 20 per cent of Mexico’s corn imports from the U.S. are white corn, used to make food products such as tortillas. (Bhofack2/iStock/Getty Images)

U.S. demands formal trade talks with Mexico over GMO corn dispute

U.S. says new rules a breach of CUSMA

Chicago/Washington | Reuters — The United States requested formal trade consultations with Mexico on Monday over U.S. objections to its southern neighbour’s plans to limit imports of genetically modified corn and other agricultural biotechnology products. The U.S. Trade Representative’s office announced the request for technical talks after months of informal discussions with Mexican officials over […] Read more