CORN HIGHLIGHTS:

• The corn market posted strong losses to end the week, and sellers were extremely active to end the week in the grain markets. A weak export sales report, strong dollar, and heavy selling in the soybean and wheat markets weighed on corn futures.  The March contract finished the week 3 ¼ cents lower, breaking a 4-week streak of higher closes.
• Failure to break resistance at $4.60 in the March contract triggered long liquidation. The weak close suggests potential for further selling in Sunday night’s trade.
• Weekly corn export sales disappointed, with 777,000 MT (30.6 mb) reported for the week ending December 26, below expectations. Mexico remained the top buyer.
• The U.S. dollar index had a strong week, trading to a 26-month high this week. The strong dollar limits the corn market as the combination of a strong dollar and higher corn prices may impact demand. In addition, wheat future trading to new lows on the session also brings demand concerns as cheaper wheat can replace corn in feed rations.
• The USDA will release the next WASDE and Quarterly Grain Stocks report on Friday, January 10. The report will be closely watched to see the available stockpiles, and the current demand tone in the corn market. The corn market may trade very choppy next week going into those reports.

SOYBEAN HIGHLIGHTS:

• Soybeans ended the day sharply lower after a poor export sales report and an Argentinian weather forecast that has shown increased moisture over the next week. March futures were unable to take out yesterday’s high and were dragged down primarily by lower soybean meal, but soybean oil was slightly lower as well.
• Today’s export sales report saw soybean sales increase by 17.8 million bushels for 24/25 and none for 25/26. This was below the lowest trade estimate and below last week’s sales. Last week’s export shipments of 62.6 mb were above the 23.7 mb needed each week to meet the USDA’s export estimates. Primary destinations were to China, the Republic of South Africa, and Spain.
• US soybean crushings came in at 210 million bushels for November, which was above the average trade guess and was 5% higher than the same period last year. Crude oil production was 7.1% higher than the same period last year.
• On January 1 there were 331 deliveries against January soybeans for a total of 820 deliveries. There have been 2,097 deliveries against January bean meal and 820 deliveries against January soybean oil.

WHEAT HIGHLIGHTS:

• Wheat futures saw double-digit losses across all classes, pressured by technical selling, improved rain forecasts for Argentina, and weak export sales. Sharp declines in Paris milling wheat, with March Paris wheat breaking below its 200-day moving average, further weighed on U.S. markets.
• The USDA reported an increase of only 5.2 mb of wheat export sales for 24/25 with 0 mb for 25/26. Additionally, shipments last week at 14.0 mb fell under the 18.2 mb pace needed per week to reach the USDA’s export goal of 850 mb. Total sales commitments have reached 621 mb, which is up 11% from a year ago, but behind the USDA’s estimate of a 20% increase.
• Despite today’s dip, the U.S. Dollar Index remains near its highest level since November 2022, adding pressure to wheat markets. A record-low Russian ruble further complicates U.S. export competitiveness.

DAIRY HIGHLIGHTS:

• Class III futures saw some additional gains on Friday led by the January and February contracts which were both 9 cents higher.
• Spot cheese continues to climb, gaining 0.625 cents to $1.8750/lb. Whey remains unchanged at $0.75/lb.
• Class IV futures were all unchanged besides second quarter contracts which were 15-17 cents higher.
• Spot butter improved 0.75 cents to $2.5575/lb while powder lost 0.25 cents to $1.3675/lb.

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Author

Brandon Doherty