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A little-less profitable on the farm in December

December 31, 2012 By Leave a Comment

The Preliminary Index of Prices Received by Farmers in December decreased 2.4 percent from November. The Crop Index declined 3.4 percent while the Livestock Index was unchanged.

The average price of corn was a penny lower at $7.01 per bushel, soybeans increased 40 cents to average $14.70 per bushel, all wheat declined 13 cents to average $8.33 per bushel and all hay was down $1.00 to $192 per ton.

On the livestock side, the December hog price averaged $62.90 per hundredweight up $1.80 from November. Beef cattle were $2.00 higher at $125 per hundredweight. The all milk price in December slipped 90 cents to average $21.10 per hundred. Eggs decreased 6.3 cents to 95.7 cents per dozen, broilers increased 3 cent to average 60 cents per pound and turkeys were 8.2 cents cheaper at 66.9 cents per pound.

The Index of Prices Paid by Farmers in December decreased a half-percent from November. Lower prices for concentrates, complete feeds, LP gas and gasoline more than offset higher prices for feeder pigs, feeder cattle, nitrogen, potash and phosphate.

Compared to December of 2011, the prices received by farmers are 12 percent higher while the prices paid are 5.3 percent higher.

Read the full NASS report here:

Filed Under: News, USDA/Government Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

The markets and the fiscal cliff

December 31, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Negotiations surrounding the looming “fiscal cliff” continued yesterday. 

Arlan Suderman, Senior Market Analyst for WaterStreet Solutions said yesterday’s markets were reacting to the talks in Washington, DC.  “We’ve started on a weak note with skepticism about getting any real deal done,” he says.  “And then word started to emerge mid-morning about a deal – and then we saw broader markets starting to go up.  Corn was leading the way higher and it was correlating very closely to gold.”

As the details on a potential deal began to emerge – the markets began to move into positive territory.

But – Suderman tells Brownfield as the President made his remarks yesterday afternoon – some of that momentum was lost.  “As he admitted this would not be a broad comprehensive deal with long-term implications and that it wasn’t yet done – we lost some of that momentum,” he says.  “But then we regained some as we headed toward the close with some end of the month, end of the fiscal quarter, and end of the fiscal year type positions squaring.”

Overall he said – it was a choppy day trading with most eyes focused on Washington, DC.

AUDIO: Arlan Suderman, Markets and the Fiscal Cliff (5:30mp3)

Filed Under: Human Interest, Markets, News, USDA/Government Tagged With: , , ,

GROWMARK buys/leases Bunge fertilizer properties

December 31, 2012 By Leave a Comment

GROWMARK has agreed to purchase Bunge North America’s interest in B-G Fertilizer LLC. B-G owns and operates the former CF Industries terminal in Cincinnati, Ohio. In addition, GROWMARK will lease Bunge fertilizer assets in Council Bluffs, Iowa and Fulton Illinois.

Overall, the acquisition and lease agreements represent approximately 130,000 tons of dry and liquid plant food storage.

Bailey Ragan, vice president, Grain, Biofuels and Fertilizer for Bunge North America says Bunge has “decided to focus our investments in our other lines of business.”

GROWMARK cooperative provides agricultural products, services and grain marketing in 45 states and Ontario, Canada.

Filed Under: Human Interest, News Tagged With: , , , , ,

Egypt did not ban Brazilian beef

December 31, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Make that five countries which have banned beef from Brazil after a 13-year-old cow tested positive for atypical BSE. Initially Brazil said Egypt, Saudi Arabia, China, South Africa, South Korea and Japan banned their beef but apparently Egypt did not. Brazil’s agriculture ministry says there was a misunderstanding and Egypt never banned Brazilian beef.

The 13-year-old cow did not die from the disease, atypical BSE can occur spontaneously in aged cattle. Brazil did not lose its “negligible risk” classification from the World Animal Health Organization and is threatening WTO action if the other five countries do not lift their bans by March.

Filed Under: News, World Ag News/Trade Tagged With: , , , ,

Quiet close for dairy markets

December 31, 2012 By Leave a Comment

A pretty quiet day to close out the year in the cash dairy markets. Barrels held steady on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange at $1.71 while blocks gained 2 cents to $1.76 on one unfilled bid. Cash butter held steady at $1.4975 with an uncovered offer and no activity in the nonfat dry milk market. Class III futures were under some pressure from the fact the dairy cliff issue had not yet been resolved when the markets finished the day. January was 19 cents lower; February lost 22 cents, March down 15 cents.

Compared to the end of 2011, barrels are up 13 cents, blocks are 19.75 cents higher, butter is a dime lower and Class III futures are 75 cents to $1.00 higher.

The Preliminary Index of Prices Received by Farmers in December decreased 2.4 percent from November. The Crop Index declined 3.4 percent while the Livestock Index was unchanged. The average price of corn was a penny lower at $7.01 per bushel, soybeans increased 40 cents to average $14.70 per bushel and all hay was down $1.00 to $192 per ton. Meanwhile the all milk price for December is 90 cents lower than November at $21.10 per hundredweight. That puts the December milk-to-feed ratio at 1.65 down from 1.73 in November.

Filed Under: Dairy, News Tagged With: , , , , , , , , ,

Just when it seemed like a deal was ready….

December 31, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Just when it seemed a deal on the fiscal cliff was close…someone brought up the details. The plan called for an end to the Bush-era tax cuts for individuals making more than $400,000 per year and couples making more than $450,000. As the details became more available there was growing talk that Republicans would demand more spending cuts when the Administration is going to need to raise the debt limit again in a couple of weeks. When President Obama held a press conference to announce that a deal was getting close, he said that in future negotiations any additional cuts would have to be met with additional revenues. The President’s remarks were seen as an effort to hold Democratic support for the measure. Republicans balked and now reports are the House will not vote on anything before midnight.

Meanwhile the dairy cliff is still pending as well as nothing has been done with the farm bill extension put together by House and Senate Ag Committee leadership over the weekend.

Filed Under: News, Top Stories, USDA/Government Tagged With: , , , ,

Nearby corn sees solid late bounce

December 31, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Soybeans were lower on technical selling and end of the year profit taking. Unknown did buy 140,000 tons of 2012/13 U.S. beans but the market was more focused on the recent cancellations. South American crop weather looks generally good outside of a small dry patch, and past that sale, there was no real fresh news. Soybean meal was lower and bean oil was up modestly on the adjustment of product spreads.

Corn was mostly modestly higher on short covering and technical buying. There was no real fresh news for corn either but the outside markets were more stable and there was at least some optimism about a budget deal in DC. In any event, trade volume was low ahead of the second weekday off for traders in a week. Ethanol futures were steady to weak. Dow Jones Newswires reports the Philippines has purchased at least 5,000 tons of corn from Myanmar.

The wheat complex was mostly lower with Chicago and Minneapolis down on profit taking and technical selling. Kansas City was up on forecasts for more snow and rain around the hard red winter region, but still not enough to break the drought. Past that – there was no fresh news for wheat either, outside of Iraq tendering for “at least” 50,000 tons of wheat from either the U.S. or a number of other sources, including Australia, Canada, Germany, Russia, and Ukraine.

Filed Under: Closing Futures & Livestock Briefs, Markets Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Nebraska’s wheat rating slips again

December 31, 2012 By Leave a Comment

The December 31st weather and crops report from the Nebraska Ag Statistics Service shows nearly half of the state’s winter wheat crop is rated poor to very poor.

The crop is rated 34 percent poor and 15 percent very poor, with 37 percent fair and 14 percent good.  None of the crop earned an excellent rating.

Nebraska hay and forage supplies were listed as 39 percent short to very short and 61 percent adequate.  The condition of cattle and calves rated 70 percent good to excellent, well below last year’s 93 percent good to excellent.

Filed Under: Crops, News Tagged With: , , ,

Closing Grain and Livestock Futures: December 31, 2012

December 31, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Mar. corn closed at $6.98 and 1/4, up 4 and 1/4 cents
Jan. soybeans closed at $14.18 and 1/4, down 5 and 1/4 cents
Jan. soybean meal closed at $420.60, down $7.10
Jan. soybean oil closed at 49.16, up 22 points
Mar. wheat closed at $7.78, down 3/4 cent
Dec. live cattle closed at $129.90, up 50 cents
Feb. lean hogs closed at $85.72, down 65 cents
Feb. crude oil closed at $91.82, up $1.02
Mar. cotton closed at 75.14, up 48 points
Jan. Class III milk closed at $17.91, down 19 cents
Jan. gold closed at $1,654.90, down $7.80
Dow Jones Industrial Average: 13,104.14, up 166.03 points

Filed Under: Closing Futures & Livestock Briefs, Markets Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , ,

Livestock futures settle lower

December 31, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Cattle country remained in slow gear on Monday ahead of the New Year’s break. The new offerings of ready steers and heifers are mixed, larger in Texas, smaller in Kansas and Nebraska, and about unchanged in Colorado. A few asking prices are around 129.00 to 130.00 in the South and 205.00 to 207.00 in the North. Significant trade volume will probably be delayed until Thursday or Friday. The kill totaled 82,000 head, 61,000 greater than Christmas Eve and 73,000 larger than 2011.

Boxed beef cutout values were firm on moderate demand and offerings. Choice boxed beef was up .68 at 194.15, and select was .76 higher at 181.05.

Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle contracts settled 50 points higher to 127 lower. Futures bounced higher and lower through the morning hours. Traders fluctuated between following the pressure in the lean hog futures and focusing on the pressure in the grain markets which will lower production costs. There was light trade activity and uncertainty in both cash cattle and beef values and that kept traders from reaching too far ahead into 2013. December contracts expired at noon at 129.90 up .50, and February was down 1.27 at 132.30.

Feeder cattle finished the session 30 to 80 points lower.  Feeders had been mixed for much of th3e session on pressure in the grain markets. But nearby corn showed modest gains and feeder futures closed lower across the board in very light volume. January settled .62 lower at 151.40, and March was down .45 at 154.27.

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Filed Under: Closing Futures & Livestock Briefs, Livestock, Markets Tagged With: ,
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