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The next issue of Agri Marketing will feature a Salute to Hawkeye Steel Products company celebrating its 100th anniversary. Mfgr of Pride of the Farm, Brower poultry and Span-Tech buildings. To schedule your congratulatory ad, contact Audrey Evans at: AudreyE@AgriMarketing.com

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WEEKLY COMMODITY HIGHLIGHTS

Nearby Futures	Weekly Change	Friday's Close	Year Ago
Corn	-0.0600	3.8125	3.7650
Soybeans	-0.2950	8.7250	9.1525
Wheat	-0.1975	5.5375	5.1650
Cattle	-4.63	119.68	118.15
Hogs	-11.85	61.60	70.80
Cotton	-1.90	67.50	74.40
Milk	-0.51	17.74	14.36
Crude Oil	-2.76	51.43	53.79

The growing coronavirus outbreak in China helped drive both financial and commodity markets lower on the week. Soybeans tumbled to an eight-month low, a drop that was accompanied by sharp losses in soybean meal and soyoil. Wheat also tumbled, amid profit-taking and technical selling. Corn's losses were more modest, but it still posted its lowest weekly close in seven weeks. Cotton fell sharply as well. The main reason for the selloff is the coronavirus outbreak, which showed no signs of improving during the week. Concerns about its impact on the global economy, and Chinese commodity demand, are growing. So is speculation on how this will affect China's ability to meet its trade deal commitments. The worries about the virus also drove equities lower and sent crude oil to multi-month lows. Meanwhile weather conditions in Brazil are largely favorable, and while there are some problems with dryness in Argentina, those problems appear to fall far short of a "disaster." Early reports on Brazil's soybean crop continue to show very strong yields. Another negative factor, particularly for corn, is expectations for a big increase in planted acres this year.

The livestock complex also buckled under the weight of the coronavirus outbreak. Lean hogs in particular suffered one of their worst weeks in recent memory. In addition to questions about how the virus would impact Chinese demand for U.S. pork, a continued record large U.S. hog slaughter rate added to the bearish scenario, and losses accelerated on technical selling. Cash hog prices showed some seasonal strength during the week, but wholesale pork prices tumbled. In cattle, live cattle futures fell sharply to start the week and hit their lowest level in three months on Thursday, pressured by hogs and demand concerns. Plains cash cattle trade was down $2 on the week, to $122.

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