Last Friday's USDA reports threw another major curve ball at the markets just when the market bears were getting comfortable in with their bearish frame of mind. The corn acreage estimate at nearly 96 million acres was, by itself, bearish. That is the number market bears will now be quick to focus on, as they will project big yield estimates (163 to 164 bushels per acre) and big increases in corn ending supplies. The problem is that corn will not be the story in 2012/13. That storyline was already shifting from corn to soybeans before last week's USDA reports. It is now soybeans and other oilseeds that will take the headlines and drive agricultural commodity investments in the months ahead, because:
South American soybean production w...
Key Takeaways: President Trump announced $8 billion in additional agricultural assistance through the Harvest Fuel Relief Program, as USDA projects farm fuel and oil expenses will increase 28.8 percent in 2026. The package follows $12 billion in earlier relief, while government farm payments w...
Key Takeaways: A student group from the University of Chicago is protesting to bring back onion futures trading. Trading in onion futures was banned in 1958 following a spectacular bout of market manipulation that resulted in a corner of the physical market. The ban on onion futures led t...
Beef packer margins deteriorated to $141/head last week, down $55 from the prior week as fed cattle prices strengthened while the Choice cutout remained nearly unchanged. The cutout held near $373/cwt while fed cattle prices climbed $4/cwt to $224/cwt, narrowing processor profits. Despite the d...
