CORN HIGHLIGHTS:

• Money flowed into the grain markets to end the week, and corn futures followed as futures traded higher to end the week. July futures traded 2 cents higher on the week, breaking a two-week losing streak. December corn finished the week 6 ¼ cents lower.
• Geopolitical tensions added uncertainty to the markets as Israel launched an attack against Iranian nuclear sites during the overnight. The crude oil market traded sharply higher and helped trigger some short covering in the corn market. Traders will be watching the headlines closely over the weekend to see if there will be any escalation in the conflict.
• July futures saw additional short covering and follow-through buying after Thursday’s close and supportive USDA report. Old crop corn carryover is at 1.365 BB, supported by strong export demand for U.S. corn. Expectations are for the carryout number to be tightened in future reports as current export sales are at 96% of the market year total on the day of the June report.
• Strong buying in the soybean market helped support corn futures with the announcement of the EPA on the biofuels blending mandate targets. The blending target came in higher than expected at 5.6 billion gallons for 2026 and 5.86 billion gallons for 2027. This is up significantly from the current target of 3.35 billion gallons for 2025. Soybean oil traded the price limit higher on the session, fueling the soybean rally.
• The corn market will be focused on global headlines and weather going into the end of June. Forecasts are staying favorable for crops during this time frame, limiting the corn rally potential. The June Planted Acreage report is 17 days away and will be the report likely to set the direction of the corn market into the summer months.

SOYBEAN HIGHLIGHTS:

• Soybeans closed substantially higher heading into the weekend after new biomass diesel quotas came in higher than previously rumored. The November contract will now look to break above the first resistance level around $10.60 with the second resistance around $10.65 after today’s newfound strength.
• The Renewable Fuels Association released the new biomass quotas today, which now stand to be 3.35 billion gallons for 2025, 5.61 billion gallons for 2026, and 5.86 billion gallons for 2027.
• The Buenos Aires Grain Exchange slightly bumped their soybean production estimate for Argentina to 50.3 mmt, up from their previous estimate of 50 mb. The group also pegged soybean harvest in the country at 93.2% done.
• Monday will be the release of the May NOPA Crush report. Average analyst guesses are at 193.519 mb, which if realized, would be up 1.7% from the month prior and 5.4% higher than May of last year.
• Rainfall is expected over the next 7 days, with a majority of the soybean belt seeing anywhere from 0.25” to 4”. Higher totals are expected South of the I-80 line into Missouri and the Delta region.

WHEAT HIGHLIGHTS:

• Wheat closed out the week sharply higher as it followed strong gains in the soy complex. Israel is reported to have launched attacks on Iran overnight, targeting their nuclear infrastructure. This led to a mix of short covering and speculative buying interest as war premium was factored back into the trade.
• As reported by the USDA, as of June 10, an estimated 15% of winter wheat acres are experiencing drought conditions, up from 12% a week ago. Drought also expanded in spring wheat areas by 1% to 20% for the same time period. At this time last year, only 3% of spring wheat acres were in drought.
• According to the Buenos Aires Grain Exchange, wheat planting in Argentina advanced 15% last week to 38.5% complete. A storm system moving across northeastern Argentina today and tomorrow should bring beneficial moisture to the newly planted wheat, but will likely delay harvest of corn and soybeans as well.

DAIRY HIGHLIGHTS:

• Class III futures fell once again on pressure from spot a poor spot session for cheese. The September contract led the way lower, closing down 11 cents to $19.09.
• Spot cheese declined 0.875 cents on the day to close out the week at $1.83625/lb. Whey was unchanged from the day prior at $0.5525/lb.
• Class IV contracts were able to find some buyers with July through October contracts seeing double digit gains. This comes after a quiet trade on Thursday.
• Spot butter tacked on another 2.50 cents going into the weekend at $2.57/lb. Powder was also able to see a slight improvement of 0.25 cents to close at $1.2675/lb.

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Author

Brandon Doherty