Wheat futures slightly higher; cattle futures mixed

Market Line April 29, 2009 Wheat futures posted small gains Tuesday. Louise Gartner for the Linn Group at the Chicago Board of Trade says even serious planting delays for spring wheat in the Northern Plains aren't rallying the wheat market. Gartner: "The season for a rally is quickly closing and it looks like maybe we have already gotten all we are going to get. It is not much and it would be a very disappointing seasonal run into this early May timeframe." Gartner notes that the Central and Southern Plains continue to get beneficial moisture. USDA's weekly crop ratings for winter wheat showed a two point gain in the good to excellent category to 45 percent. On Tuesday Chicago July wheat was up 2 ½ cents at 5-22. July corn up 2 ¾ at 3-83 ½. Portland soft white wheat any protein five to ten cents lower at mostly 5-30. Maximum 10.5 percent protein mostly 5-35. August new crop steady to lower at 5-25 to 5-33. Club wheat 6-30. Maximum 10.5 percent club wheat 6-35. HRW 11.5 % protein steady to up four cents at 6-06. DNS 14% protein up three cents at 7-80. No Portland barley bids. The World Animal Health Organization says the current flu in the news should not even be called swine flu but pork futures were battered again Tuesday as cattle contracts returned to more normal trading and closed mixed. Live cattle saw contract rolling from April to June. Feeders are getting pressure from lower cash markets. June live cattle up 15 cents at 81-95. August feeders down 70 at 99-05. June Class III milk down 21 cents at 10-82. I'm Bob Hoff and that's Market Line on the Northwest Ag Information Network.