CORN HIGHLIGHTS:

• Corn futures saw positive gains starting the week as strength in the Chicago wheat, and good export inspections supported corn futures. May futures added 3 ¼ cents to 452, while July corn added 2 ¾ cents to 460 ¼.
• USDA released weekly export inspections on Monday morning. For the week ending April 16, export inspections totaled 1.669 MMt (65.7 mb). South Korea and Mexico were the top destinations for US corn that week. Total inspection has hit 2.036 BB for the marketing year, up 32% over last year with the USDA forecasting a 15% increase.
• Managed hedge funds have been working out of their net long position in the corn market. Last week, as of April 14, funds held a net long position of 159,483 corn contracts, down 59,149 positions from the prior week. Over the past two weeks, Funds have liquidated approximately 100,000 net long positions in the corn market.
• USDA will release the next crop progress report on Monday afternoon. Corn planting is in its very early stages nationally, but the market may be watching for any trends of the Corn Belt rainfall last week and any planting disruptions.
• Basis levels for barge shipments to the Gulf and rail shipments to the Pacific Northwest have firmed as exporters work to secure supplies amid strong demand, while producer selling has remained limited following the recent price pullback.

SOYBEAN HIGHLIGHTS:

• Soybeans were mixed to end the day with prices bear spread. Soy products moved sharply balancing each other out and causing soybeans to end near unchanged. May soybeans lost 1-1/2 cents to $11.65-3/4 while November gained 1-1/4 cents to $11.57-3/4. May soybean meal lost $6.70 to $325.10 and May soybean oil gained 1.47 cents to 69.63 cents as it followed crude oil higher.
• Over the weekend after Iran stated that it was fully re-opening the Strait of Hormuz, President Trump kept the U.S. blockade in place which caused Iran to backtrack on peace negotiations. This has supported crude oil, but today President Trump said that “an agreement will be signed tonight”.
• Today’s export inspections report saw soybean inspections within analyst trading ranges with a total of 27.5 million bushels for 25/26. About 60% of these inspections were bound for China. Total inspections for 25/26 are now at 1.182 billion bushels, which is down 25% from the previous year.
• Friday’s CFTC report saw funds as sellers of soybeans as of April 14. They sold 14,479 contracts reducing their net long position to 175,151 contracts, which remains near record long. They hold a net long position in soybean oil futures and options of 148,320 contracts and are long soybean meal by 135,743 contracts.

WHEAT HIGHLIGHTS:

• Wheat faded off earlier highs to close in mixed fashion, despite freezing conditions over the weekend across much of the US winter wheat growing region. In the May contract, Chicago gained 5-3/4 cents to 597, Kansas City was down 1-3/4 cents at 635, and MIAX was 2 cents higher at 655-1/4.
• Weekly wheat export inspections came in at 19 mb, which brings total 25/26 inspections to 790 mb, up 14% from last year. Inspections are currently running above the USDA’s estimated pace. Total exports for 25/26 are forecasted at 900 mb, up 9% from the year prior.
• Over the weekend, temperatures in the northern plains dipped into the mid-teens, with readings in the 20s as far south as northwest Kansas. While it is too early to assess the extent of any damage, this will likely further stress winter wheat that is already being affected by drought.
• According to Chinese customs data, their wheat and wheat flour imports in the month of March totaled 490,000 mt, which is an increase of about 160% year over year. Meanwhile, their year-to-date imports are up 495% compared to last year, at 1.79 mmt.
• Russia is reported to have shipped wheat to Iran through the Caspian Sea for the first time in over eight years. Their ag ministry data shows 4,000 mt of food grade wheat was sent from January to March. While the amount is relatively small, this reflects the ongoing uncertainty and logistical challenges caused by the war in the Middle East and restrictions on the Strait of Hormuz.

DAIRY HIGHLIGHTS:

• The big mover in the spot trade Monday was butter, tacking on 4.50c to $1.7350/lb.
• Each spot product except powder finished the day green. Powder closed flat at $2.20/lb, which remains an all-time high.
• Milk futures began the week mixed to higher, with relatively light volume traded. Participants may be waiting for additional news and events later this week.
• This is a busy week for dairy. Tuesday is the next Global Dairy Trade auction, Wednesday is the milk production report, and Friday is cold storage.
• The upcoming quarterly averages for Class III and IV milk remain in steady uptrends as the market moves off seasonal lows.

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Author

Brandon Doherty