By: NATHAN STUEDLE
GRAIN MARKET SUMMARY
Grain markets were mixed Monday, with corn continuing its recent rally while soybeans came under heavy selling pressure.
Corn finished higher across the board. September gained 7¾ cents to $4.91¼, while December added 7 cents to $5.15¼. March corn was 6¾ higher at $5.30¼. Corn continues to find support following the Pro Farmer Crop Tour, which estimated the national yield at 173.2 bushels per acre and production at 15.34 billion bushels—well below USDA’s August projection.
Soybeans went the other direction. September beans dropped 9 cents to $12.16, while November fell 15¼ cents to $12.24¼. January beans were down 15½ cents. Soybean meal bucked the weakness, finishing roughly $2.60 to $2.90 higher.
Wheat was mixed. Chicago September wheat gained a quarter-cent to $6.81¾, while Kansas City September wheat dropped 5¾ cents to $7.50¼.
So, another good day for corn following the bullish Crop Tour numbers, while profit-taking hit soybeans after their strong run last week.
LIVESTOCK MARKET SUMMARY
It was an ugly Monday in the cattle markets, with live and feeder cattle sharply lower despite a bullish Cattle on Feed report Friday afternoon.
October live cattle dropped $4.32½ to $213.60, while December lost $4.30 to $214.20. February cattle were down $3.72½.
Feeder cattle took an even harder hit. September feeders plunged $4.80 to $324.22½, October dropped $5.37½ to $318.27½, and November was down $5.27½.
The selloff came despite USDA reporting July feedlot placements down 11 percent from last year—the lowest July placements since the current data series began. Instead, the market remains focused on the administration’s plan to temporarily increase lower-tariff ground-beef imports, which has created considerable uncertainty for cattle producers and futures traders.
Lean hogs were comparatively quiet. October gained 25 cents to $81.12½, while December slipped a nickel to $71.47½. Most other contracts finished narrowly mixed to lower.