CME August 2023 live cattle with 20- and 50-day moving averages and October 2023 live cattle (black line). (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: CME cattle down off contract highs on profit-taking

Hogs also down off early strength

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures turned lower on Wednesday on a round of profit-taking after most months climbed to life-of-contract highs, with a seasonal downturn in beef prices adding to bearish sentiment, traders said. Most-active August live cattle futures settled down 1.95 cents at 176.875 cents/lb., retreating after rising to […] Read more

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

U.S. grains: Corn hits 2-1/2-year low, soybeans tumble over USDA data

WASDE also pressures CBOT wheat

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. corn futures fell to their lowest price since early 2021 on Wednesday after the U.S. Department of Agriculture projected a larger-than-expected domestic crop and rising supplies, analysts said. Soybean futures tumbled after USDA’s forecast of 2023-24 soy ending stocks fell above a range of trade estimates, and wheat futures were […] Read more


Liberia-flagged bulker K Sukret, carrying grain under the Black Sea Grain Initiative, waits for inspection in the southern anchorage of Istanbul on May 17, 2023. (Photo: Reuters/Mehmet Emin Caliskan)

UN asks Putin to extend Black Sea grain deal in return for SWIFT access

Grain export initiative to expire Monday otherwise

United Nations | Reuters — U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has proposed to Russian President Vladimir Putin that he extend a deal allowing the safe Black Sea export of grain from Ukraine in return for connecting a subsidiary of Russia’s agricultural bank to the SWIFT international payment system, sources told Reuters. Russia has threatened to ditch […] Read more

CME August 2023 lean hogs with 20- and 50-day moving averages and October 2023 lean hogs (black line). (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: CME hogs rally as pork prices rise

August live cattle touch new contract high

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange lean hog futures closed higher on Tuesday, bouncing after a three-session slide as wholesale pork prices rose and cash hog prices firmed, traders said, while tight cattle supplies sent futures to life-of-contract highs. CME August lean hogs settled up 3.4 cents at 97.575 cents/lb., and the October contract […] Read more


Aerial view of Centerm, a Burrard Inlet terminal for containerized cargo at the Port of Vancouver. (Bloodua/iStock/Getty Images)

Pulse weekly outlook: B.C. port strike drags on exports

Cargoes either stuck at port or held at home

MarketsFarm — As the 11-day-old port workers strike in British Columbia continued to impede exports from Canada’s West Coast, Marcos Mosnaim of Export Packers said the work stoppage was taking a toll on the country’s pulse exports — specifically those exported by container. “So you have cargo held in Vancouver or on its way to […] Read more

CBOT November 2023 soybeans with 20- and 100-day moving averages and August 2023 soybeans (yellow line). (Barchart)

U.S. grains: Soy climbs on supply worries ahead of USDA reports

Chicago wheat, corn also rise

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. soybean futures rose for a second straight session on Tuesday as traders braced for a monthly U.S. government crop report due on Wednesday that is expected to project a smaller crop and tighter supplies, analysts said. Wheat futures rose as a drone strike on Ukraine’s Odesa port returned attention to […] Read more


Nutrien’s head office building in Saskatoon. (Liam O’Connor photo)

Nutrien cuts output as West Coast port strike hits day 11

Longshore union, management met Monday night, source says

Ottawa | Reuters — The world’s biggest fertilizer producer Nutrien cut production on Tuesday, citing the impact of a 11-day-old strike in Canada’s Pacific ports whose cost has now ballooned to an estimated $6 billion. Some 7,500 dock workers represented by the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU Canada) walked off on July 1 after […] Read more

CBOT November 2023 soybeans with Bollinger bands (20,2). (Barchart)

U.S. grains: Soy futures climb ahead of key USDA reports

CBOT December corn up, September wheat down

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. soybean futures rose about two per cent on Monday, bouncing off of a one-week low set Friday as traders positioned ahead of monthly crop reports due at midweek from the U.S. Department of Agriculture that are expected to project tighter U.S. supplies of the oilseed, traders said. Strength in global […] Read more


CME October 2023 live cattle with 20- and 100-day moving averages and August 2023 live cattle (dark red line). (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: CME cattle end higher on firm cash values

Hogs settle lower off recent highs

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures ended modestly higher on Monday on follow-though buying from Friday and carry-over strength from last week’s strong cash cattle market. Cash cattle traded late last week as high as $184-$185 per hundredweight (cwt) in northern feedlot areas, traders said, up from sales of around $178-$182 […] Read more

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

U.S. livestock: CME live cattle climb on firmer cash market

Hogs down on technical selling

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures rallied on Friday on tight fed cattle supplies and higher cash market sales in the central U.S. Plains and western Midwest, traders said. Beef packers were in need of cattle to fill near-term operations, including a large Saturday slaughter and a full week of production […] Read more