DTN Early Word Grains 07/18 06:30

DTN Early Word Grains 07/18 06:30 Grains Weaker as Demand Stumbles, Forecast is Non-Threatening December corn is down 4 cents per bushel, November soybeans are down 2 1/4 cents, and September KC wheat is down 4 cents. By Tregg Cronin DTN Contributing Analyst 6:00 a.m. CME Globex: Global equity markets are weaker, pressured by weak earnings reports across Europe and the U.S., as well as heightened tensions between the U.S. and China and the U.S. and Iran. Russia has signaled its willingness to join a European Union payments channel designed to circumvent U.S. sanctions, a move which is likely to keep tensions high between the U.S. and Iran. Negotiators in the U.S.-China trade spat note talks have stalled because of a dispute over Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei. In grains, no momentum can be mustered by bulls as demand indicators remain weak for most commodities, and the forecast is not threatening enough to warrant an assault at recent highs. Few believe the U.S. corn and soybean crop is in the clear, but non-threatening weather is still difficult to rally on in mid-July. Very likely, the market will need confirmation from the USDA in August that acres and/or yield is lower than the July WASDE assumptions to regain upside momentum and make new highs a possibility. OUTSIDE MARKETS: Previous closes on Wednesday showed the Dow Jones Industrial Average down 115.78 at 27,219.85 and the S&P 500 down 19.62 at 3,004.04 while the 10-year Treasury yield ended at 2.061%. Early Thursday, the September DJIA futures are down 29 points. Asian markets are lower with Japan's Nikkei 225 down 422.94 (-1.97%) and China's Shanghai Composite down 30.52 points (-1.04%). European markets are lower with London's FTSE 100 down 32.65 points (-0.43%), Germany's DAX down 111.55 points (-0.9%) and France's CAC 40 down 25.81 points (-0.46%). The September euro is down 0.002 at 1.130 and the September U.S. dollar index is up 0.027 at 96.880. The September 30-year T-Bond is down 2/32nds, while August gold is down $2.50 at $1,420.80 and August crude oil is up $0.41 at $57.19. Soybeans on China's Dalian Exchange were up 0.21% while soybean meal was up 0.78%..