Market Line May 22, 2009 Futures exchanges will be closed Monday for the Memorial Day Holiday. Wheat futures were mixed Thursday. Lynn Smith with the Zaner Group at the Chicago Board of Trade says there were mixed signals for wheat yesterday.

 

Smith: “The equities and the crude oil were on the downside and they were bearish for wheat whereas a weak U.S. dollar was supportive. Looks like there was evening up of positions going into a long holiday weekend. The export sales figures came in at 563,500 metric tons. That was above expectations so it wasn‘t a bad number for a change.”

 

Recall that Egypt has quarantined Russian wheat over quality problems. Well, coincidentally, Russia has blocked a shipment of oranges from Egypt.

 

On Thursday Chicago July wheat was down 4 ¼ cents at 5-93 ½. July corn down two at 4-24. Portland soft white wheat and club wheat two to five cents lower at mostly 5-80 with some $1 premiums on club. August new crop soft white lower at 5-78 to 5-82. HRW 11.5 % protein down three cents at 6-72. DNS 14% protein up a penny at 8-33. No Portland barley bids.

 

Live cattle futures were firm Thursday with feeders flat to weak. Traders were uneasy about the cash cattle trade

and also the Cattle on Feed report due out this afternoon. June live cattle up 30 cents at 82-52. August feeders down two cents at 101-67. June Class III milk up three cents at 10-16 with deferred months lower.

 

I’m Bob Hoff and that’s Market Line on the Northwest Ag Information Network.

Now this.