DTN Midday Grain Comments 01/06 10:51

DTN Midday Grain Comments 01/06 10:51 Soybean Futures Higher at Midday; Corn, Wheat Flat-Lower Corn futures are flat to a penny lower at midday Friday; soybean futures are 15 to 17 cents higher; wheat futures are flat to 5 cents lower. David M. Fiala DTN Contributing Analyst MARKET SUMMARY: Corn futures are flat to a penny lower at midday Friday; soybean futures are 15 to 17 cents higher; wheat futures are flat to 5 cents lower. The U.S. stock market is much firmer with the DOW up 530 points. The U.S. Dollar Index is 75 points lower. Interest rate products are firmer. Energies are firmer with crude up 1.10 and natural gas is unchanged. Livestock trade is weaker. Precious metals are stronger with gold up 25.10. CORN: Corn futures are flat to a penny lower with trade fading back from early strength to work sideways along the lower end of the range with positive spillover from soybeans limited, along with demand concerns continuing. Ethanol margins will need demand to improve to support production near-term with stocks still ample even with the pulldown Wednesday as winter storms limited production. Crop development will continue to be watched in Argentina as pace and conditions lag last year with short-term hot-and-dry conditions persisting. Weekly export sales were disappointing at 319,200 metric tons (mt). Basis has stabilized in the west with above-average action holding up overall. On the March chart, resistance is at the $6.59 20-day moving average, which we faded through Wednesday with the Lower Bollinger Band at $6.36, the next level of support below that. SOYBEANS: Soybean futures are 15 to 17 cents higher at midday with a drier Argentina forecast helping to pull some buying back after the early week washout. Meal is $10.50 to $11.50 higher and oil is 45 to 55 points higher. Brazil looks to remain in good shape short-term, while the Argentina improvement will need to continue with the forecast in flux as we get deeper into the growing season along with short-term stress possible the next few days. Weekly export sales remain unremarkable at 721,000 mt of old crop, 151,000 mt of new, 79,300 of meal, and 400 of oil. Basis remains mostly sideways near-term. March chart resistance is at the $14.86 20-day moving average, which we are above at midday, with the lower Bollinger Band at $14.56 as the next level down. WHEAT: Wheat futures are flat to 5 cents lower at midday with trade struggling to extend the late-session strength from yesterday after firming from the recent lows with little change to short-term Northern Hemipshere weather or Black Sea conditions. The Southern Plains look to remain mostly dry short-term with warmer action into January with moisture and better cover to the north short-term with the second week better for most. Matif wheat values are flat with the U.S. on the back burner on the world export market. Weekly export sales were soft at 47,100 mt of old crop, and 97,000 mt of new. On the chart, KC March has resistance at the 20-day moving average at $8.58, which we fell through Wednesday, with the Lower Bollinger Band below that at $8.26. David Fiala can be reached at dfiala@futuresone.com Follow him on Twitter @davidfiala (c) Copyright 2023 DTN, LLC. All rights reserved.