In the News

The next issue of Agri Marketing will include a Salute to Farm Broadcasting. To schedule your organization's ad, contact Audrey Evans: AudreyE@AgriMarketing.com. Stay vigilant and safe.

ADVERTISEMENT

1.5 Million Points of Light

...for your marketing plans. Power-up your marketing plans and expand your customer base or sharpen your prospect insight with USAgriculture Masterfile. Use our audited database of demographically ID'd producers for reach-assurance. Use this database for your next audience extension program and more.

The USAgriculture Masterfile is the industry's premier AAM audited database. Choose from 1.5 million audited profiles. Demos are first-gen, straight from the producers to us... and audited.

WEEKLY COMMODITY HIGHLIGHTS

Nearby Futures	Weekly Change	Friday's Close	Year Ago
Corn	-0.2200	3.4375	3.7625
Soybeans	+0.1375	8.6250	9.1050
Wheat	+0.3325	5.3925	4.6650
Cattle	+3.08	98.65	129.90
Hogs	+5.20	61.58	78.33
Cotton	-6.81	53.68	77.18
Milk	+0.18	16.08	15.33
Crude Oil	-9.01	23.10	59.98

It was another tumultuous week in the ag complex and financial markets, but several ag markets did end higher amid short-covering and in some cases fresh demand. Wheat and soybeans both bounced back from major lows, with wheat leading the way higher and posting bullish reversals on the weekly charts. China's first purchase of U.S. hard red winter wheat in more than two years gave wheat some support. Soybeans were led by soybean meal, which surged amid growing concern about potential port disruptions in South American. The soymeal market and to a lesser extent, the soybean market, also now appear to be factoring in a sharp drop in distillers' dried grain production with the U.S. ethanol industry warning it faces collapse without government help. The deteriorating prospects for ethanol also weighed on corn futures. On the positive side, China made a rare purchase of U.S. corn. Also, the prospect of a slow planting season is a small but growing concern, as forecasts continue to show above-average precipitation, and flood threats, into April. The big loser on the week was cotton, which tumbled to its lowest level in more than a decade. Part of that slide was due to the crash in crude oil, which fell to an 18-year low.

The livestock complex rebounded from contract lows, rallying on surging grocery store demand for beef and pork. Boxed Beef prices soared by more than $40 in the course of a week, as consumers who no longer are able to eat out are filling their freezers with meat in anticipation of a long period stuck at home. Plains cash cattle trade was also higher. Packer margins have exploded due to the surge in beef prices. Lean hog futures had support from grocery store demand as well as from much-improved weekly pork export sales to China. The coronavirus and its economic impact remains the key factor across commodities and financial markets.

Click on the Brock logo or call 1-800-558-3431 for more info on our services.