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WEEKLY COMMODITY HIGHLIGHTS

Nearby Futures	Weekly Change	Friday's Close	Year Ago
Corn	+0.0250	3.8925	3.6675
Soybeans	+0.0225	9.3675	8.8200
Wheat	-0.0175	5.1600	5.0800
Cattle	+3.45	119.53	117.13
Hogs	-0.47	64.45	58.20
Cotton	-0.67	64.23	79.03
Milk	+0.60	20.15	14.88
Crude Oil	-0.63	56.03	63.69

Grain and soybean futures ended the week nearly unchanged, as uncertainty about U.S. corn and soybean production and a sloppy harvest was offset by sluggish demand. For the second straight week, corn futures spent a lot of time chopping around without having much actual movement to show for it in the end. The harvest for corn and soybeans remains the slowest harvest in a decade, and further rains along with a snowstorm in parts of the Midwest only prolong the misery. While supportive for prices, supplies are likely to remain large regardless, particularly for corn. Ethanol demand remains soft along with exports. The fate of a "phase 1" trade deal between the U.S. and China is up in the air, as a conference in Chile at which the two countries were to sign a deal this month has been cancelled. The two countries are working to establish another date and location to finalize the deal. Cotton futures were down on the week on soft export demand, but continue to find technical support amid a longer-term uptrend. In energy markets, crude oil futures were down on the week but natural gas soared, propelled by forecasts calling for unusually cold temperatures across much of the U.S. throughout the first half of November.

In the livestock complex, live cattle futures continued their surge, rallying on strong wholesale beef prices and further increases in Plains cash markets. The harsh winter weather in the Plains was another supportive factor, along with technical buying. Plains cash trade occurred mostly at $112, up $2 from the prior week. Lean hog futures were mixed, as nearby futures fell amid continued weakness in cash markets. Hog supplies remain large. Wholesale pork prices have remained firm despite record October pork production, which was up 5% from a year earlier.

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