In the News

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WEEKLY COMMODITY HIGHLIGHTS

Nearby Futures	Weekly Change	Friday's Close	Year Ago
Corn	+0.0700	3.7875	3.6425
Soybeans	+0.3100	8.9275	9.3300
Wheat	+0.1375	5.6050	4.1400
Cattle	+1.63	110.88	106.22
Hogs	+7.43	58.60	66.92
Cotton	-3.84	81.39	66.91
Milk	-0.32	15.81	17.15
Crude Oil	-1.76	65.87	47.09

Grain and oilseed futures were mostly higher on the week, with soybeans leading the way higher on optimism about U.S.-China trade and uncertainty about U.S. production potential. Soybeans posted their best week since May, recovering most of the ground lost the prior week. Reports late in the week that the U.S. and China seek to resolve their trade dispute this fall helped to rally the market. Dryness in parts of the Midwest was also a supportive factor for soybeans, as was solid demand, both domestically and for export. Wheat futures were higher, bouncing back strongly from multi-week lows on speculation that Russia may seek to restrict exports. Regardless of whether that happens, the trade is sensitive to wheat supply disruptions right now following a stressful growing season across Europe. Drought in Australia is also a supportive factor for wheat. Corn futures were modestly higher on the week, with support from wheat and soybeans. Cotton futures however sank, with pressure from a surging U.S. dollar weighing. Lackluster weekly cotton export sales reinforced concerns about demand.

In the livestock complex, lean hog futures soared Thursday into Friday, propelled by hopes for trade breakthroughs with China and Mexico, along with news of another African Swine Fever case in China. The market traded limit-up on Thursday and saw significant follow-through on Friday, confirming that futures have put in significant price lows. Increased industry expansion and seasonal cash hog weakness have at this point been factored in to futures, and with strong packer margins and increasing slaughter capacity, demand this fall is expected to be strong. In the cattle market, live cattle futures fell to five-week lows on Monday but edged higher after that on support from strong beef prices and technically-driven short-covering. The Choice beef cutout rose more than $3 on the week, and beef export demand is strong.

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