Market's Focus Remains on South American Weather

Market’s Focus Remains on South American Weather
I'm KayDee Gilkey with the Market Line Report for January 10, 2012.

Grains started out the week with solid gains. With last week’s forecasted rains for Argentina not as heavy as anticipated and with more hot weather, Jarrod Kitt Research Director of Linn Group reports that the lower-than-forecasted rains did make a difference in the market.

Kitt: “Pretty much every day that you don’t get these big soaker rains, they’re revising down crop production. The other things we are going to be watching out for this week. We have index fund rebalancing on tap. Number two we’ve got the big USDA report on Thursday. Its importance can’t be stressed enough. Even if it is insignificant and comes in line with estimates --- even that is significant in its insignificance. So keep positions square, keep an eye on South American and watch out for that USDA report on Thursday.”

March corn was up 8 1/2 at 6-52. March Wheat ended Monday up 17 cents at 6-41 3/4.

Portland prices for soft white wheat and club wheat were up 5 to 15 cents mostly 6-23. Hard Red Winter Wheat with 11.5 pct protein was up 18 cents at mostly 7-51. DNS wheat with 14 pct protein was mixed at mostly 9-28.

February live cattle closed down 38 cents at 119-95. March feeder cattle were down 13 cents at 149-75. February class III milk was down 35 cents at 17-40.

I'm KayDee Gilkey and that's Market Line on Northwest Aginformation Network. Now this.