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WEEKLY COMMODITY HIGHLIGHTS

Nearby Futures	Weekly Change	Friday's Close	Year Ago
Corn	-0.1125	4.2450	3.7575
Soybeans	-0.1825	9.0100	8.7600
Wheat	-0.0650	4.9600	5.3650
Cattle	+1.40	109.90	109.38
Hogs	+0.53	79.45	52.25
Cotton	+1.47	64.54	88.10
Milk	-0.01	17.65	14.88
Crude Oil	+0.50	56.26	68.43

Grain and soybean futures were down on the week, pressured by benign weather in the Midwest, demand concerns and technical selling. Moderate temperatures across the Corn Belt limited concern about dryness, although concern is starting to rise in some areas. Extended forecasts call for continued dryness, and while mild temperatures may limit stress on crops, those crops could also use some more heat given that they were generally planted late and are behind. Yield potential for corn and soybeans remains a very big question mark. On the demand side, rumors and some verified reports that China was allowing for some tariff-free purchases of U.S. ag products, including soybeans, cotton and pork, helped to limit the market's downside, although the amounts being purchased are likely to be limited. The move by China may amount to nothing more than a goodwill gesture ahead of talks between key U.S. and Chinese trade negotiators happening this week in China. Those talks are unlikely to yield any near-term breakthrough on trade. Cotton futures rallied in part on the China optimism. Rice futures also surged. Crude oil was up slightly and remains in a holding pattern, underpinned by tensions in the Persian Gulf, while upside is limited by demand and U.S. output.

In the livestock complex, live cattle climbed as speculative buying returned following neutral Cattle on Feed and Cattle Inventory reports. Futures spent much of the week moving in narrow ranges amid an absence of cash market activity. August, October and December futures did reach their highest levels in two-to-three months. In cash markets, packers continue to resist paying higher prices amid record supplies of cattle in feedlots. Lean hog futures rallied the first half of the week amid soaring cash hog prices, but sold off hard for the third Thursday in a row and struggled to recover on Friday.

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