Get more daily market reports from Pro Farmer, start a free trial here.
Good Morning farm country. Davis Michaelsen here with your morning update for Tuesday, March 9. From Pro Farmer’s First Thing Today, these are some of the stories we are watching this morning:
Corn futures are down 3 to 4 after facing pressure overnight. Soybeans are split, with old-crop fractionally to 2 cents higher and new-crop down 2 to 3 cents. SRW wheat futures are up 3 to 8 cents, HRW wheat is up 2 cents and spring wheat futures are 3 to 9 cents higher. The U.S. dollar index is under light pressure, while crude oil futures are posting modest gains.
In today’s report, most expect just modest cuts to USDA’s corn, soybean, and cotton carryover projections for the U.S., with wheat ending stocks expected to edge a bit higher. South American production estimates will be another focal point, though no major changes are anticipated.
Three ships carrying ethanol are making their way from the U.S. Gulf Coast to China, three trade sources told Reuters yesterday. Each ship has a capacity of around 30,000 MT (240,000 barrels) of ethanol, according to those sources. Asian-based traders say more U.S. sales of the biofuel to China are likely.
President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion stimulus package is poised to clear the House today or Wednesday. This comes after proposals far-left Democrats championed were scaled back. The Senate’s changes to the House-passed bill included dropping a proposed minimum wage increase but are unlikely to prove enough to make far-left Democrats vote against it.
The Johns Hopkins University Coronavirus Resource Center said that more than 52.884 million doses have been administered and 31.285 million have been fully vaccinated, representing or 9.56% of the U.S. population.
Producers who have not yet elected and enrolled in the Ag Risk Coverage (ARC) or Price Loss Coverage (PLC) for 2021 should do so by March 15. Those who have not yet signed a contract or who want to make an election change should contact their local service center to make an appointment.
A U.S. attaché expects China’s 2021 hog slaughter to reach nearly 600 million head, but it cautions that animal diseases and low sow productivity rates could undermine expansion.
Boxed beef prices were mixed to start the week, with Choice sliding 25 cents and Select dropping $2.28. Alone, that might signal the product market is working on a low. But movement was paltry at 70 loads, signaling prices may need to drop further to trigger value buying heading into grilling season.
Pork movement was also fairly light to start the week on a 21-cent dip in the pork cutout value. But cash hog bids jumped $3.54 to start the week, speaking to strong demand. Packer profit margins climbed from $4.60 a head Friday to $14.65 a head on Monday.
