After prices taking a big hit following USDA’s Agricultural Outlook Forum, grain prices faired better this week.
May corn prices were down 9¢ and December corn prices were down 5¢ for the week ending Feb. 24. May and November soybean prices were basically flat for the week. Wheat prices were down 4¢ to 20¢, depending on the contract.
“We have a lot going on,” says Jerry Gulke, president of Gulke Group. “China has got a plan to get Putin to the negotiating table which, we’re not sure it’s going to work or not. Plus, our president is talking about making E15 available year-round, which would help us a lot.”
Gulke says it’s good to see some positive news after the grain markets have dropped so significantly.
“We had a nice turnaround on Friday,” he says. “I’ve been watching old-crop corn, as there were rumors about China buying corn. We had a low of $6.22, but we closed at $6.39—a 17¢ move in just three days ago. So, somebody was buying corn.”
Additionally, Gulke says, news is surfacing that the South American crop is suffering due to weather.
“All those things are hitting the market,” he says. “And, if a person is short and in doubt, you get out. We did that. There’s a place that you put on risk and there’s a place that you take it off. So, we decided to take some money off and put in the bank.”
USDA Report on Deck
For USDA’s March 8 Crop Production and World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates, Gulke expects USDA to update the Argentine corn crop estimate.
“They’re, they’re out of sync with the private firms,” he says. “I would expect they would lower all the crops except the Brazilian soybean crop, since it is such a whopper of a crop.”
Gulke will also be watching for any changes to U.S. exports and global demand.
“Then, of course, it will be all about spring weather,” he says. “That’ll, bring volatility back into the market.”
Check the latest market prices in AgWeb’s Commodity Markets Center.
Jerry Gulke farms in Illinois and North Dakota. He is president of Gulke Group Advisory Services.
Learn more at GulkeGroup.com
Disclaimer: There is substantial risk of loss in trading futures or options, and each investor and trader must consider whether this is a suitable investment. There is no guarantee the advice we give will result in profitable trades. Past performance is not indicative of future results.
