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WEEKLY COMMODITY HIGHLIGHTS

Nearby Futures	Weekly Change	Friday's Close	Year Ago
Corn	+0.0775	3.7600	3.6525
Soybeans	-0.0150	8.9125	902.50
Wheat	-0.0925	5.1575	438.25
Cattle	-1.8300	105.75	128.95
Hogs	+3.6500	65.93	57.73
Cotton	+1.3000	62.79	73.11
Milk	+0.0600	16.37	15.09
Crude Oil	-3.4800	41.28	56.66

Grain and soybean futures were mostly lower amid ongoing concern about the coronavirus and its impact on global commodity demand, although the reaction in the grains was muted. Corn was actually higher on the week amid choppy trade. Soybeans were down slightly. South American weather was mixed, with dryness in Argentina but the promise of relief in the forecast, along with ample rains in Brazil. In the U.S. concern about a slow start to planting is gradually building, with parts of the South and lower Midwest remaining too wet. Cotton was higher and rice futures fell. The main questions for the grain and oilseed complex are tied to the virus and its spread. That drove a sharp dive in equities and dramatic moves in other markets as well including gold, the U.S. dollar and crude oil. Bond prices surged and yields dropped to record lows, and a drop in interest rates may enable a surge of refinancing that could help underpin farmland prices. Late in the week crude oil emerged as a fresh, strongly bearish factor, after Russia and Saudi Arabia failed to agree on production cuts and instead launched into a price war. This will mean a surge in supplies even as gasoline demand plummets due to the virus.

In the livestock complex, live cattle futures rallied early in the week amid technically-driven short-covering, but the rally was short-lived. Heightened worries about the coronavirus and fears of a recession weighed, along with weaker Plains cash cattle trade. Most live cattle futures contracts made new contract lows. Despite the pessimism, beef prices were firm during the week. Lean hog futures withstood the pressure from the coronavirus and edged higher, driven by expectations of increased Chinese demand for U.S. pork along with seasonal strength in cash hog markets. Nearby April futures rose each day of the week, though gains were modest.

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