Short trading week

Market Line April 18, 2011 There will only be four trading days this week as futures exchanges will be closed Friday. Last Friday wheat futures were mixed with Chicago and Kansas City putting up small gains and Minneapolis mixed. Chicago got support from thoughts of increased soft red wheat feeding and KC from a little drier forecast for the southern plains.

Tres Knippa of Lotusbrokerage.com says weather for corn from planting onward is going to be the major focus of the grain market.

Knippa: “ You are going to have perfect weather for growing and perfect weather for harvest otherwise this corn market is going to have a very difficult time breaking because of the world ending stocks number. There is just a tight amount of corn out there and there is no getting around that.”

On Friday Chicago May wheat up 3 ¾ cents at 7-44 ¼. July new crop up 3 ¾ at 7-80. May corn down 12 ¼ cents at 7-42. Portland soft white wheat steady at 7-88. Club wheat premium at Portland mostly 25 cents. New crop August white wheat steady to a nickel lower at 7-70 to 7-90. Hard red winter 11.5 percent protein up two cents at 9-06. DNS 14% protein a penny to 24 cents lower at mostly 11-64.

Cattle futures were lower Friday on a weakened outlook for cash fed prices this week after cash cattle sold Friday four to five dollars lower than the previous week. Boxed beef was also lower. June live cattle down 120 at 115-30. May feeders down 47 cents at 133-30. May Class III milk down seven cents at 16-78.

I’m Bob Hoff and that’s Market Line on Northwest Aginfo Net.

Now this.