12/31/08 China to export grain

Market Line December 31, 2008 Wheat futures reversed higher Tuesday with double digit gains. There was not a lot of news. Southern Plains winter wheat is lacking snow cover again with another round of cold temperatures forecast for the area. Louise Gartner for the Linn Group at the Chicago Board of Trade says China announced it is releasing 500-thousand tons of corn and wheat for export. Gartner: "That follows record grain production in China and them trying to find a home for all the grain. The government has been buying as much grain as they possibly can but they are still trying to support domestic prices at least to some degree." The USDA is scheduled to release a 5-year revision of U.S. and world supply and demand numbers today. Markets are closed Thursday. On Tuesday Chicago March wheat was up 12 ¾ cents at 6-04 ¾. March corn up 2 ¾ at 3-96 ¼. Portland soft white wheat any protein was steady at mostly 5-75. Maximum 10.5 percent protein 5-85. Club wheat 7-35. Maximum 10.5 percent club wheat 7-45. HRW 11.5 % protein 11 cents higher at 6-62. DNS 14% protein up 11 at 8-51. No Portland barley bids. Many of the U.S. meat plants Mexico suspended from importing last week have been reinstated to ship meat to Mexico again. Cattle futures closed mixed Tuesday. Feb live cattle down 30 cents at 85-90. March feeders up 97 at 93-82. Milk futures continued to crash on lower cheese prices with Feb Class III milk down 58 cents at 10-97. I'm Bob Hoff and that's Market Line on the Northwest Ag Information Network. Now this.