Gains for wheat futures; cattle contracts mixed

Market Line July 24, 2009 Wheat futures were higher at all three exchanges Thursday. A USDA announcement that it will resurvey corn acreage for its August crop report was positive for corn futures and spilled over to wheat. Traders thinks corn acres will be reduced.

Louise Gartner for the Linn Group at the Chicago Board of Trade has the weekly export sales number for wheat.

Gartner: “Wheat showing 342-thousand tons. That was within the range of estimates.”

The sales figure however was below the weekly average needed to meet USDA’s export forecast for the marketing year.

Morocco is expected to tender for 180-thousand tons of U.S. soft wheat in early August. Jordan is to tender for 100-thousand tons of hard wheat.

On Thursday Chicago September wheat was up 9 ¾ cents at 5-31 ¾. September corn up 19 at 3-27. Portland soft white wheat mostly steady at 5-15. A dollar premium on club wheat. August new crop soft white steady to lower at 5-10 to 5-35. HRW 11.5 % protein up seven cents at 6-02. DNS 14% protein 8-13 lower at 6-90. No Portland barley bids.

Live cattle futures were steady to higher Thursday with feeders lower. Improving wholesale beef prices and outside markets were positive for live contracts. Higher corn was a negative for feeders. August live cattle unchanged at 85-02. August feeders down 75 cents at 102-37. August Class III milk up seven cents at 10-75. This afternoon USDA issues a Cattle on Feed Report and its semi-annual cattle inventory.

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

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