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Agri Marketing's March issue will include an update on the Dairy market. Coming in April: a Salute to the Nat'l Assn of Farm Broadcasting's (NAFB) 75th anniversary!

WEEKLY COMMODITY HIGHLIGHTS

Nearby Futures	Weekly Change	Friday's Close	Year Ago
Corn	-0.0400	3.7425	3.6575
Soybeans	-0.0325	9.1450	9.8775
Wheat	-0.0700	5.1725	4.5625
Cattle	+1.65	127.93	123.725
Hogs	-1.70	58.43	69.45
Cotton	-1.09	72.55	76.62
Milk	+0.19	14.58	13.51
Crude Oil	-2.54	52.72	61.15

Grain and soybean futures were down on the week, pressured by pessimism over U.S.-China trade negotiations as traders awaited Friday's key USDA reports. Those reports included Supply and Demand, Dec. 1 Grain Stocks, final 2018 Crop Production and Winter Wheat seedings. On the whole, these reports were anticlimactic, although there were a few notable changes. One was the final 2018 corn crop estimate, which was cut to 14.420 billion bushels on a yield of 176.4 bushels per acre. This was a bigger cut than expected, and down more than 200 million bushels from USDA's December estimate. But USDA also slashed its corn-use-for-ethanol and sweetener demand estimates. USDA also cut its soybean crop estimate, along with its soybean export estimate. The report was mixed for wheat, with larger-than-expected Dec. 1 stocks but also much lower than expected winter wheat seedings. USDA pegged winter wheat seedings for 2019 harvest at just 31.290 million acres, down from 32.535 million a year earlier and the lowest total in 110 years. USDA's report was also negative for cotton and rice prices. In addition to a lack of progress between the U.S. and China, slowly improving weather in Brazil has been a negative factor for corn and soybeans.

In livestock, live cattle futures held firm thanks in part of strong early-week beef prices and expectations for firm cash trade. Technically, the market had tumbled the prior week, but did not see any follow-through to the downside. Winter weather remains a wildcard. We are entering what is normally one of the weakest periods of the year for beef demand, which could limit futures' upside. Lean hog futures started the week strong, but quickly turned lower amid pressure from weak cash fundamentals. The pessimism about U.S.-China trade also hung over the market. Bulls in this market are still hoping for increased exports to China due to African swine fever.

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