Commercial vessels  –including vessels which are part of the Black Sea grain deal — wait to pass the Bosphorus strait off the shores of Yenikapi during a misty morning in Istanbul, Turkey on Oct. 31, 2022. (Photo: Reuters/Umit Bektas)

Russia suggests renewing Black Sea grain deal for shorter term

Moscow says sanctions have created barriers for its exports

Geneva | Reuters — Moscow is suggesting to renew a deal allowing the safe export of grain from Ukraine’s Black Sea ports — but only for a period of 60 days, half the term of the previous renewal, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Vershinin said on Monday. Vershinin’s statement came after talks with U.N. officials […] Read more

CBOT May 2023 soft red winter wheat with 20-day moving average, MGEX May 2023 hard red spring wheat (yellow line) and K.C. May 2023 hard red winter wheat (orange line). (Barchart)

U.S. grains: Wheat, corn get boost off weaker dollar after multi-month lows

Expectations grow for Black Sea deal extension

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago wheat futures closed higher on Friday, boosted by a weaker U.S. dollar, after hitting a 20-month low, while corn futures rose from a seven-month low. The markets recovered after a week that saw expectations for an extended Black Sea export deal and a lower U.S. government estimate for corn export […] Read more


CME April 2023 feeder cattle (right column) with Bollinger bands (20,2) and CBOT May 2023 corn (orange line, left column). (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: CME feeder cattle retreat as corn prices rise

Live cattle also lower, lean hogs up

Chicago | Reuters — Feeder cattle futures on Friday extended a setback from 2015 highs the front-month contract reached this week, as rising corn prices temporarily dampened expectations for cheaper livestock feed, analysts said. Corn futures ended higher on the Chicago Board of Trade after sliding earlier to a seven-month low. Feed is generally the […] 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

The USDA building in Washington, D.C. (Art Wager/iStock/Getty Images)

USDA sees increased EU canola imports, no extra from Canada

U.S. also projects higher Canadian ending stocks

MarketsFarm — The European Union will likely import more canola (rapeseed) this year than earlier thought, but any increased movement should come from Australia or Ukraine rather than Canada, according to updated projections from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. USDA raised its forecast for European rapeseed imports during the 2022-23 marketing year by 550,000 tonnes, […] 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