CORN HIGHLIGHTS:

• The corn market opened the month of December with quiet, mixed trade. Light buying supported the December contract that is in delivery, while the most active March futures traded within a narrow 5 ¼ cent range.
• The December contract entered delivery with 222 contracts delivered, a relatively small number that likely helped support prices.
• USDA weekly corn inspections totaled 36.8 mb, bringing cumulative inspections 31% above last year. The key shipping window for corn still lies ahead during the March–May time frame.
• Brazil’s crop planting remains ahead of schedule, with soybeans 91% planted and the first corn crop 94% complete. Timely soybean planting keeps producers on track for the Safrinha corn crop, hitting the optimal weather windows for development.

SOYBEAN HIGHLIGHTS:

• Soybeans ended the day lower but recovered from their lowest prices earlier in the day that saw the January contract down to 977 ½. There was a flash sale reported this morning, but the trade seemed more focused on the excellent growing conditions in Brazil. Both soybean meal and oil ended the day lower as well.
• The USDA reported that 134,000 mt of soybeans were sold to China for the 24/25 marketing year. There have been multiple sales of soybeans throughout the past few weeks indicating good demand, but analysts are also expecting record production out Brazil on top of the large US crop.
• Soybean inspections were strong for the week ending Thursday, November 28, totaling 76.7 mb, bringing 24/25 inspections to 801 mb, up 16% from last year. The USDA projects exports at 1.825 bb, a 7% increase year-over-year.
• Brazil’s soybean crop is in excellent condition, with Agroconsult projecting a record 172.2 million bushels. AgRural estimates 91% of the crop has been planted.

WHEAT HIGHLIGHTS:

• After a day of two-sided trade, wheat closed mostly lower in all three US classes. Gains from higher Matif wheat futures were limited by a surge in the US Dollar Index, driven by concerns over a potential collapse of the French economy.
• Weekly wheat export inspections reached 10.9 mb, bringing 24/25 totals to 404 mb, up 32% from last year. Inspections exceed the USDA’s projected pace, with total exports forecast at 825 mb, a 17% year-over-year increase.
• Russian officials approved an 11 mmt wheat export quota for mid-February through June, down from 29 mmt last year. The smaller quota reflects a reduced crop and record early-season exports.
• China recently approved Argentine wheat imports, with potential sales marking the first since the 1990s. Argentina is on track for a large harvest, including a 3.9 mmt wheat crop in Buenos Aires province (up 18% year-over-year) and a total wheat crop of 17.5 mmt, up from 15.9 mmt last year.

DAIRY HIGHLIGHTS:

• Class III futures were mostly lower on Monday led by the May contract which dropped 8 cents to close at $18.60. Higher volume trading however remains in the January contract.
• Spot cheese was slightly weaker, losing 0.25 cents to close at $1.62125/lb. Whey pushed into another new year high at $0.7275/lb.
• Class IV futures were quiet on the day. The January contract improved 5 cents to $20.68, but light volume keeps movement limited.
• Spot butter gained just 0.25 cents to close at $2.4950/lb while powder went unchanged at $1.3950/lb.

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Author

John Heinberg