CME December 2023 lean hogs with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: CME hog, cattle futures decline

Pigs seen bulking up on new-crop corn

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange livestock markets weakened on Monday, with lean hog futures nearing their lowest price in more than four months. Concerns about lacklustre demand for U.S. pork continued to hang over the market, analysts said. Seasonally, hog futures also tend to decline around this time of year as pigs fatten […] Read more

CME December 2023 live cattle with 20- and 50-day moving averages and ICE December 2023 Brent crude (black line, left column). (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: Cattle retreat as energy rally dents beef demand outlook

Lean hog futures mostly also lower

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange cattle futures fell on Friday as traders banked profits and squared positions ahead of the weekend as geopolitical turmoil riled energy markets and stoked concerns about beef demand. Crude oil rallied more than five per cent on Friday on the escalating Middle East conflict as the Israeli military […] Read more


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

U.S. grains: Soy, corn slip on profit taking, macro pressure

Exports lift wheat futures

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. soybean futures retreated on Friday on profit-taking after hitting two-week highs in the previous session and as souring consumer sentiment and inflation worries hung over the market. Corn futures followed soybeans lower, but wheat rallied after the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) reported stronger-than-expected weekly export sales and confirmed a […] Read more

CBOT November 2023 soybeans with 20- and 50-day moving averages and December 2023 soymeal (dark grey line, left column). (Barchart)

U.S. grains: Chicago soybeans surge after USDA projects smaller soy, corn crops

CBOT corn, wheat also higher

New York | Reuters — Chicago soybean and corn futures shot up on Thursday following a closely watched U.S. government report forecasting a smaller corn and soybean harvest than previously projected, and below an average of analysts’ estimates. The Chicago Board of Trade’s (CBOT) most-active soybean futures contract jumped about three per cent to settle […] Read more


CME December 2023 live cattle with 30-, 40- and 50-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: CME cattle, hogs rise on technical buying

USDA supply data seen as priced into market

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange cattle futures rose on Thursday as technical buyers stepped into the market after prices weakened earlier in the session. Traders said the massive supplies reported by the U.S. Agriculture Department have been priced in and speculators were likely to buy any dip in the market at current levels. […] Read more

(Christophe Paul photo courtesy USDA)

CBOT weekly outlook: Markets react bullishly to USDA report

Corn, soy production estimates revised lower

MarketsFarm — Most of the October world agricultural supply/demand estimates (WASDE) released Thursday from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) came out lower than trade expectations, causing price jumps on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT). “Many people were not expecting a major (average) yield change,” Ryan Ettner, trader for Allendale Inc. in McHenry, Ill. […] Read more


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

U.S. livestock: Chicago cattle turn higher

CME lean hogs mostly lower

Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) cattle futures turned solidly higher Wednesday while lean hogs mostly continued lower. Most-active December live cattle closed 1.975 cents higher Wednesday at 186.975 cents/lb., erasing two days’ losses, but not before touching a one-month low of 184.25 (all figures US$). Both front-month October 2023 and February 2024 turned 1.925 cents higher, […] Read more

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

U.S. grains: Chicago soy touches 22-month low ahead of USDA report

CBOT wheat also lower; corn firm

New York | Reuters — Chicago soybean and wheat futures fell on Wednesday, and corn futures firmed as the markets turned their attention to widely-followed U.S. government crop forecasts. The most-active soybean contract on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) dropped 19 cents, about 1.5 per cent, to settle at $12.52-1/2 a bushel (all figures […] Read more


(Dave Bedard photo)

Managed money fund traders increase bearish canola bets

Funds still net long in CBOT soybeans

MarketsFarm — The managed money net short position in ICE Futures canola grew to its largest level in three and a half months in early October on a combination of long liquidation and new bearish bets going on the books, according to the latest Commitments of Traders report from the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission […] Read more

CME December 2023 live cattle with Bollinger bands (20,2). (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: Live cattle mostly lower

Lean hogs also down a second day

Most-active December live cattle on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) turned lower for a second day in a row Tuesday, as did lean hog and deferred-month feeder cattle futures. December live cattle closed Tuesday at 185 cents/lb., down 0.35 cent on the day, while lightly-traded front-month October ended up 0.2 cent at 182.575 cents/lb. (all […] Read more