01/15/09 Traders watching cold weather for winter wheat

Market Line January 15, 2008 Wheat futures where higher by a few cents again on Wednesday. Trading was very light. The stock market and crude oil provided some pressure on the grains. Louise Gartner for the Linn Group at the Chicago Board of Trade says cold weather in the central plains and Midwest is something the wheat market is watching. Gartner: "Of course the northern tier is engulfed in extremely cold temperatures. That front is moving through the upper Midwest. Much of that region has enough snow cover to prevent winterkill damage. If that cold dips down into parts of the far southern Midwest we could see some potential winterkill as snow cover there is much more limited." Egypt tendered for wheat after the close yesterday. They have been buying mostly Russian wheat with no purchases of U.S. soft white this marketing year. It now appears results of a Pakistan tender for 250-thousand tons of U.S. soft white will be known next week. On Wednesday Chicago March wheat was up 3 ½ cents at 5-74 ¼. March corn up four at 3-66 ½. Portland soft white wheat any protein steady to a nickel higher at mostly 5-70. Maximum 10.5 percent protein 5-80. Club wheat 7-20. Maximum 10.5 percent club wheat 7-30. HRW 11.5 % protein up three cents at 6-35. DNS 14% protein up a nickel at 8-12. No Portland barley bids. Cattle futures were mostly lower Wednesday. Profit taking was a factor as was defensive action in the stock market. Boxed beef did post gains however. Feb live cattle down 72 cents at 83-35. March feeders down 27 at 94-62. Feb Class III milk down 26 cents at 9-45. I'm Bob Hoff and that's Market Line on the Northwest Ag Information Network. Now this.