The latest Market Talks covering Commodities. Published exclusively on Dow Jones Newswires throughout the day.
1555 ET - Livestock futures post modest gains amid increases in pork cutout and boxed beef prices. Traders are concerned about lower wholesale meat prices and consumers' ability to spend money on premium beef, says Rich Nelson of Allendale. Pork is in a worse situation than beef, with wholesale prices down 18% from last year, he says. "Pork has been a problem for about three months already." Live cattle settle up 0.2% on CME at $2.25275 a pound. Lean hogs rise 0.6% to 82.225 cents a pound.(anthony.harrup@wsj.com)
1534 ET - U.S. natural gas futures post their seventh consecutive weekly loss as strong production and soft LNG feedgas offset high seasonal power-sector demand. Prices face further downward pressure with a new pipeline set to carry gas out of the oversupplied Permian Basin into East Texas and closer to the benchmark Henry Hub in Louisiana, Rabobank senior energy strategist Joe DeLaura says in a note. "On top of this bearish news, weather forecasts also trended cooler for the coming weeks, indicating lower demand for the power-plant fuel as consumers dial back on their air-conditioning use." Nymex natural gas settles up 0.8% at $2.662/mmBtu for a 3.1% weekly loss.(anthony.harrup@wsj.com)
1522 ET - Talks aimed at reopening the Strait of Hormuz led crude prices lower this week, although futures pull back some going into the weekend with no deal signed. Obstacles to an agreement include reluctance by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps to give up leverage, its insistence on charging fees to use the strait, and the lifting of the U.S. blockade, Mizuho's Robert Yawger says in a note. Other problems are hostilities between Yemen's Houthis and Saudi Arabia, and between Israel and Hezbollah, he adds. WTI settles up 1.2% at $78.18 a barrel, but down 7.7% for the week. Brent rises 1.3% to $83.55 for a 5% weekly loss. (anthony.harrup@wsj.com)
1422 ET - Wheat futures are leading grains higher, rebounding from the previous session's decline as the Russia-Ukraine war keeps Black Sea exports disrupted. "Last month's surge to 2-3 year highs was driven by logistical issues, not by supply issues, something that a peace agreement could quickly solve," Mark Soderberg of ADM Investor Services says in a note. "So far global importers have not chased higher alternative sources, certainly not the U.S."CBOT wheat is up 1.8%. (anthony.harrup@wsj.com)
1344 ET - Of the 406,000 metric tons of flash corn export sales to Mexico announced since Wednesday, more than 346,000 tons were for the 2027/28 marketing year, Mike Castle of StoneX notes. "This should serve as a reminder of the growth in Mexican corn import demand amid the ongoing expansion of their domestic livestock sector, even with the phased reopening of the border to feeder cattle imports," he writes. The U.S. ban on cattle imports from Mexico because of the New World screwworm outbreak left Mexico with greater need for feed. The gradual border reopening is due to start Aug. 24 in Arizona, across from the low-risk Mexican state of Sonora. (anthony.harrup@wsj.com)
1323 ET - Oil futures move higher as the weekend approaches with the market still waiting for news on a deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. "The underlying situation is becoming more precarious because the buffer that has kept the market functioning up until now has largely been global stock levels," Baringa energy analyst Ellen Fraser says in a note. "But that buffer is eroding and stock levels are reaching decade lows." WTI is up 1.4% at $78.36 a barrel and Brent is up 1.3% at $83.59. (anthony.harrup@wsj.com)
1322 ET - The U.S. continues adding oil rigs as the Middle East conflict drags on, keeping crude prices high. The number of rigs drilling for oil rose by three this week to 454, Baker Hughes reports, which is 43 more than a year ago when the world was facing prospects of an oil glut. U.S. crude production has risen this year, averaging 13.8 million barrels a day in recent weeks, according to EIA estimates. Rigs drilling for natural gas fell by three this week to 124, or one more than a year ago. (anthony.harrup@wsj.com)
1211 ET - Corn futures look likely to stay rangebound into the weekend and next Wednesday's WASDE report, Naomi Blohm of Total Farm Marketing says in a note. A smaller corn crop in Europe is known, although not yet by how much, while a question is where the USDA places U.S. corn production. "Europe is a net importer of corn anyway, but now will likely need to import even more corn," she says. And with Black Sea exports still disrupted, the U.S. may benefit from additional EU demand in the coming months. "The overly bearish sentiment for corn has shifted to neutral, and could become quite friendly in 2027 depending on how other countries' corn crops fare, and ultimately where U.S. corn yield ends up." CBOT corn is up 0.6%. (anthony.harrup@wsj.com)
1148 ET - Livestock futures are mixed with cattle down and hogs edging up after two sessions of declines. Early August is a time of procurement for Labor Day, which the next major steak-eating holiday, says Rich Nelson of Allendale. "We're watching very carefully to see if this buying procurement does happen if it has higher wholesale beef prices," he says. There's also concern about U.S. consumers and their ability to spend money on premium beef, he adds, and in that sense the July employment report was "a bit disappointing." Nonfarm payrolls fell by 23,000 last month. Live cattle are off 0.6% and lean hogs up 0.2% on CME. (anthony.harrup@wsj.com)
1123 ET - Soybeans are oversold following their recent decline with room to trade higher on any supportive news, although this is a difficult time of year for a rally, especially with rain in the forecast, Doug Bergman of RCM Alternatives says in a note. "Demand is strong to provide support below the market, but with harvest quickly approaching, there isn't much reason for buyers to aggressively chase the market higher either," he says. November soybeans are up 0.2% but on track for a weekly loss. (anthony.harrup@wsj.com)
1109 ET - Gold prices extend gains, rising above $4,400 a troy ounce after an unexpected drop in U.S. nonfarm payrolls for July dashed expectations of interest-rate hikes in September. New York gold futures are up 2.4% to $4,406.40 an ounce. According to the CME Group's FedWatch tool, traders are now pricing in a nearly 42% chance of a hike from 57% earlier on Friday. Meanwhile, the U.S. dollar index fell 0.3% to 99.64, making dollar-denominated commodities cheaper for overseas buyers. "Markets' focus will now turn to U.S. CPI release next week, while oil prices are also in focus with the weekend approaching and still no sign of a deal," says Fawad Razaqzada from Forex.com. (giulia.petroni@wsj.com)
1007 ET - China continues its purchases of U.S. soybeans, with the USDA announcing flash sales of 238,000 metric tons for 2026/27 marketing year. Private exporters also reported 286,097 tons of corn sales to Mexico--29,808 tons for 2026/27 and 256,289 tons for the 2027/2028 marketing year. Grain futures are broadly higher in early trading, with CBOT corn up 1.1%, wheat up 1.4% and soybeans gaining 0.3%.
Comments