In the News

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WEEKLY COMMODITY HIGHLIGHTS

Nearby Futures	Weekly Change	Friday's Close	Year Ago
Corn	0.045	3.52	3.4725
Soybeans	-0.2075	9.495	9.945
Wheat	0.065	4.2475	3.97
Cattle	.93	119.83	114.00
Hogs	1.45	69,98	64.73
Cotton	1.95	77.87	70.20
Milk	-0.38	13.95	16.73
Crude Oil	1.14	58.47	52.95

In a mostly quiet holiday week with low trading volumes, soybeans made the most significant move, dropping steadily throughout the week to new three-month lows on technical selling and a bearish supply outlook. Brazil's continued favorable weather and improving crop prospects weighed on the market, overshadowing strong weekly exports. Argentina weather was a mixed market influence for corn and soybeans, as much-welcome rains arrived and some more moisture is expected through the end of the new year. However, many areas are likely to remain too dry. Corn futures bounced off the contract low early and steadily climbed higher through the rest of the week, with continued strong ethanol demand providing support. Abundant domestic supplies remain a limiting factor for corn however. Winter wheat futures were higher amid short-covering and concern about a cold snap hitting the Plains, where crops may lack protective snow cover. Cotton futures soared on Thursday for the third week in a row, hitting fresh contract highs and a 6 ½-month high on a front-month basis, with strong export sales providing support. In the energy complex, crude oil remained firmly in a sideways trading pattern, while natural gas tumbled to new lows.

In the livestock complex, live cattle futures were down on the week amid speculative liquidation despite steady cash cattle prices. Lean hog futures were higher, surging at the start of the week and at the end on technically-driven buying. Livestock traders had multiple reports to digest Friday before trading closed, including the Cattle on Feed report. It was bearish as it pegged the Dec. 1 feedlot inventory up 8.1 from a year ago, well above trade expectations. The Dec. 1 inventory was the largest in seven years. Placements were up 13.9% from a year earlier, compared to the average analyst estimate of a 5.7% gain. Meanwhile the quarterly USDA Hogs and Pigs report looked slightly bearish versus expectations.
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