Corn Rallies as Planting Marches on

• July CBOT corn futures added 11-1/2 cents this week to close at 596-1/2.
• December CBOT corn futures added 7 cents this week to close at 534-3/4.
• Net negative weekly corn export sales were reported this week reflecting Chinese corn cancellations of about 22 million bushels from last week. This was the first-ever net negative weekly corn export sales recorded in April.
• According to US Census Bureau data released this week, the US exported 194 million bushels of corn in March, this was down 34% from March 2022. Just 7% of the March 2023 corn volume was to China compared with 27% last year.
• Brazil’s safrinha corn crop remains in generally good condition as recent rains have been beneficial. A drier end to the growing season or early frost could still trim lofty yield expectations.
• US weather was very supportive to continued corn planting progress this week, forecast moisture for nearly the entire grain belt over the next seven days should jump start early crop development.

Soybeans on the Move Higher

• July CBOT soybean futures added 17-1/4 cents this week to close at 1436-1/2.
• November CBOT soybean futures added 16-1/2 cents this week to close at 1280.
• According to US Census Bureau data released this week, soybean meal exports in the month of March were a record high coming in at 1.32 million tons, this was a 22% jump from March of last year.
• US Federal Reserve Chairman, Jerome Powell, announced a quarter basis point increase to their benchmark rate this week as expected. Many believe the Fed is done with further rate hikes and is now focused on stabilizing regional banks.
• After trading to their lowest levels since late 2021 crude oil futures rallied sharply off their lows of the week to close back above the $70 per barrel level, this helped move soybean oil futures higher this week for the first week since late March.

Wheat Sharply Higher this Week

• July CBOT wheat futures added 26-1/2 cents this week to close at 660-1/4.
• July KCBOT wheat futures added 56-3/4 cents this week to close at 833.
• July MGEX spring wheat futures added 32-1/4 cents this week to close at 836.
• According to reports on Friday, Ukraine, Russia, Turkey, and the UN failed to reach an agreement to authorize new vessels for Black Sea grain exports.
• Price action across all three wheat markets was very strong this week, with bullish key reversals mid-week and strong follow-through buying to end the week.
• US wheat exports in the month of March were the lowest since 1972, totaling only 50 million bushels. This was down 20% from March 2022 and 31% below the five-year average.

Dairy Complex a Mixed Bag

• June Class III futures closed the week at $16.99, down 29 cents from last Friday’s close as it takes over as the running second month.
• For the week, spot cheese fell 6.75 cents to $1.57125/lb, hanging just above the 18-month low posted last week. Spot whey fell 2.50 cents.
• The June Class IV contract was up 22 cents on the week to $18.35, posting its third higher weekly close in a row.
• Spot butter pushed to a 5-month high this week, garnering 9.25 cents in gains overall. Spot powder closed 2.25 cents higher at $1.1975/lb.
• Today’s March Dairy Products Production report showed cheese output 0.2% below March 2022 levels, while butter production was up 1.4% YoY.