Reading Time: 3 minutes Chicago | Reuters — A glut of idled river barges is clogging Mississippi River shorelines from St. Louis to New Orleans, leaving U.S. barge companies that haul grain, coal and other bulk goods counting their losses. Even with record-large exports of corn and soybeans, typically a boon for shippers that haul grain to Gulf Coast […] Read more
Barge glut chokes U.S. shipping sector despite record harvest
U.S. livestock: Profit-taking pressures cattle futures, boosts hogs
Reading Time: 2 minutes Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures were mostly lower on Friday while lean hog futures gained sharply as investors took profits in each livestock contract, traders and analysts said. Cattle fell after Thursday’s nearly four-week high and hogs rebounded from a roughly two-month low. “It’s just an end-of-the-week rally,” Rosenthal Collins […] Read more
U.S. livestock: Hogs extend losses on cash expectations
Reading Time: 2 minutes Chicago | Reuters — U.S. lean hog futures fell more than one per cent on Thursday, extending losses to their third straight session, on pressure from expectations for declines in Midwest cash hog markets, traders and analysts said. Lower wholesale pork prices this week, especially pork belly cuts, also weighed on futures and squeezed packer […] Read more
U.S. livestock: Hogs tumble on pork price declines
Reading Time: 2 minutes Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange lean hog futures fell 3.8 per cent for their biggest daily loss in about a month on Wednesday, pulled down by investment fund selling tied to lower cash hog and wholesale pork prices, traders said. Live cattle futures rose, extending gains to the fourth straight session on support […] Read more
U.S. livestock: Cattle hit four-week high on beef gains
Reading Time: 2 minutes Chicago | Reuters — U.S. live cattle futures jumped one per cent to the highest prices in about four weeks on Tuesday, boosted by technical buying and gains in wholesale beef prices, traders said. Feeder cattle futures followed live cattle higher at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, while lean hogs were narrowly lower in light technical […] Read more
U.S. grains: Wheat, corn rise to multi-month highs
Reading Time: 2 minutes Chicago | Reuters — U.S. wheat and corn futures extended gains to set multi-month highs on Friday on follow-through buying after the U.S. Department of Agriculture slashed domestic stockpile estimates in a monthly report on Thursday. Soybeans also were higher as investors defended their net long position despite expectations for a record-large harvest in top […] Read more
U.S. grains: Wheat rallies to seven-month high after USDA data
Reading Time: 2 minutes Chicago | Reuters — U.S. wheat futures gained two per cent to a seven-month high on Thursday after the U.S. Department of Agriculture increased its export forecast and showed smaller-than-expected global supplies in a monthly report. Chicago Board of Trade soybean futures fell and corn prices declined narrowly from an earlier seven-month peak in the […] Read more
U.S. grains: Soybeans hit two-week high on fund buying
Reading Time: 2 minutes Chicago | Reuters — U.S. soybean futures jumped to a two-week high on Wednesday while corn and wheat prices also rose on support from investment fund buying and position squaring ahead of a government crop report due on Thursday. Soybeans saw the biggest gains, with Chicago Board of Trade climbing 1.5 per cent for the […] Read more
U.S. livestock: Hogs extend gains on packer demand
Reading Time: 2 minutes Chicago | Reuters — U.S. lean hog futures extended gains to a fresh seven-month high on Thursday, lifted by strong pork packer demand, while cattle futures also climbed in a short-covering rebound from Wednesday’s multiweek lows, traders and analysts said. Traders continued to bull-spread Chicago Mercantile Exchange lean hogs, with the front-month February contract hitting […] Read more
U.S. livestock: Hogs jump on pork gains
Reading Time: 2 minutes Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange lean hog futures surged three per cent to a seven-month high on Tuesday as rising pork and cash hog prices triggered investment fund and chart-based futures buying, traders and analysts said. CME live and feeder cattle futures fell to multi-week lows, pressured by ample cattle supplies. The U.S. […] Read more
A message from April Stewart, Country Guide's Associate Editor
