Headlines:
- Perdue an ‘Outstanding Choice’ For Ag Secretary, Farm Groups Say
The nomination of former Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue as the next secretary of agriculture was lauded by farm groups who said his background will serve him well. The National Grain and Feed Association (NGFA) said in a statement that Perdue, who is not related to the Perdue poultry family, is an “outstanding choice” for ag secretary. The 70-year-old Democrat-turned-Republican was a member of the NGFA’s board of directors from 2014 until his nomination, and served on its Country Elevator Committee in the late ‘80s, the group said.
- World wheat harvest to dip in 2017-18 – but not by much, says IGC
World wheat production will fall next season – but not by much, the International Grains Council said, with global area to see only a “marginal” drop despite the slump in US winter sowings to the lowest in 108 years. The IGC, in its first estimate for the 2017-18 global wheat harvest, pegged production at 735m tonnes. While a drop of 17m tonnes from this season’s all-time high, a harvest at that level would still be the third biggest on record, and leave little potential for an erosion of inventories, seen entering next season at a record 225m tonnes. “With the supply and demand outlook finely balanced, only a small contraction in end-season stocks is expected [in 2017-18],” the council said.
Summary:
Soybean has rallied for six of the last 8 trading days but the recent 4-day streak came to an end today. Beans futures had moved up to resistance and several producers took advantage of locking in some great pricing. Beans and Corn were little change in overnight and early trading. Corn remained that way for the balance of the day and Beans eventually finished the day down 5 cents. The rally in Beans moved up to the late November high where it was logical for it to stall a bit. Both the US Dollar and Crude Oil got a bit of a bounce today, which may have contributed to the drop in Beans and Wheat. Heavy precipitation had hammered Argentine crops forcing delays in plantings in some areas. Dry weather is forecasted for most of Argentina and southern Brazil for the next 5-days so that looks to help some areas of Argentina to dry out and get back to planting. On the domestic weather front, forecasters have a storm system in their radar that looks to move into the Midwest and the Plains in the early part of next week. The storm could potentially bring some snow to the region according to the National Weather Service.
