Grains end higher Wednesday with cattle lower and hogs mixed.
Kent Beadle, Paradigm Futures, says grains rallied with corn making new highs for the move.
Corn was putting in South American weather premium with concerns about dry conditions in Argentina and Southern Brazil and excessively wet conditions slowing the soybean harvest in Central Brazil.
Beadle says that is also slowing the second crop corn planting in Brazil.
Funds have continued to extend their length in the corn market and pushed the March contract above the $4.95 resistance area on the charts, which now project to $5.09.
Can the corn market continue to pull up soybeans or is that market also trading South American weather?
Wheat put in double digit gains on end of month short covering but there are also concerns with Russia’s crop with 38% rated poor to very poor.
Live and feeder cattle futures took a break with some end of month profit taking and maybe even some hedge pressure.
However, Beadle thinks its a routine correction as live cattle made contract highs but did not score a key reversal.
He also thinks the market is well supported by recent cash strength and ideas of a bullish USDA Cattle Inventory Report.
Lean hog futures ended mixed but again Beadle says cash trade has been strengthening and is helping to support the market as well as the discount hogs are holding to cattle prices.
The Federal Reserve left interest rates unchanged in their January meeting that concluded on Wednesday, which was not much of a surprise.
Beadle says the market is now looking for clues from Fed Chairman Powell about the trajectory of future cuts.
