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WEEKLY COMMODITY HIGHLIGHTS

Nearby Futures	Weekly Change	Friday's Close	Year Ago
Corn	-0.1475	4.8075	6.8225
Soybeans	-0.075	13.1950	13.8225
Wheat	-0.1050	5.7550	8.3850
Cattle	-2.40	182.23	153.43
Hogs	+4.48	70.48	85.13
Cotton	+1.98	84.38	75.11
Milk	-0.80	17.29	18.80
Crude Oil	-2.92	85.16	89.08

Grain and soybean futures were under pressure for much of the week before finishing strong on Friday, particularly in the soybeans. Traders are closely watching South American weather patterns, with the key question being the transition from excessive dryness in key growing areas of Brazil to a more favorable seasonal pattern. The underlying expectation for South American production has been strong crops, as is typical in an El Nino year, but instead it has been excessively dry through October in key areas of Brazil and Argentina. U.S. harvest pressure has been a negative factor, along with ideas that corn yields are coming in better than expected. Export demand for corn and soybeans has picked up recently. Cotton futures rallied amid technical buying and stronger export sales. Crude oil prices fell amid concerns about demand in a shaky global economy. Traders continue to closely watch the situation in the Middle East and the potential for the violence in Israel and the Gaza Strip to expand into a broader regional war.

In the livestock complex, live cattle futures got slaughtered to start the week, plunging to a four-month low as the Oct. 20 Cattle-on-Feed report sent speculative longs running for the exit. However, firm feedlot asking prices and wholesale beef values stopped the bleeding in futures after Monday and there were reports of steady cash trade in the southern Plains on Friday. Feeder cattle futures plunged to start the week, following live cattle, but ended the week strongly. Lean hog futures came under further pressure from seasonally weak cash markets, bearish hog sector data out of China and technical selling early in the week, but reversed higher on Wednesday. Futures found support Thursday and Friday from technical buying/short covering and their wide discounts to cash, with fundamental support coming from smaller U.S. frozen pork stocks.

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