DTN Midday Grain Comments 07/31 10:58

DTN Midday Grain Comments 07/31 10:58 Corn, Soybean, Wheat Futures Lower at Midday Corn futures are 16 to 18 cents lower at midday Monday; soybean futures are 43 to 46 cents lower; wheat futures are 37 to 40 cents lower. David M. Fiala DTN Contributing Analyst MARKET SUMMARY: Corn futures are 16 to 18 cents lower at midday Monday; soybean futures are 43 to 46 cents lower; wheat futures are 37 to 40 cents lower. The U.S. stock market is firmer with the S&P up 3. The U.S. Dollar Index is 3 points higher. Interest rate products are firmer. Energies are mixed with crude 1.10 higher and natural gas off .01. Livestock trade is mostly lower. Precious metals are firmer with gold up 7.30. CORN: Corn futures are 16 to 18 cents lower at midday with broad ag weakness opening the week as we are past the hottest stretch for the Corn Belt with rains working in various areas over the weekend and into Monday morning. Short-term weather looks cooler into mid-August with mixed rain coverage to continue this week. Ethanol margins should improve with unleaded near the upper end of the range as corn pulls back. Weekly export inspections were 522,927 metric tons (mt), better than recent weeks. Basis will likely fade further toward harvest. Weekly crop progress should show steady to slightly lower conditions with maturity still just ahead of the 5-year average. The second crop in Brazil will continue to see harvest progress, adding to near-term world supply. On the December chart, the 20-day moving average is above the market at $5.21, becoming resistance as we broke below it overnight with the $5.00 area the next round down. SOYBEANS: Soybean futures are 43 to 46 cents lower leading the midday weakness with better weather into August and broad product weakness as trade faded through nearby support. Meal is 9.00 to 10.00 lower and oil is 310 to 330 points lower. The daily export wire remained active with 132,000 mt sold to China, and 183,300 mt of soy cake and meal sold to the Philippines. Weekly export inspections improved at little at 329,518 mt. Basis should find some support with the board pullback. Weekly crop progress is expected to show steady to slightly lower conditions with maturity still above the 5-year average. November chart resistance is the 20-day moving average at $13.76, which we fell below overnight, with the lower Bollinger Band at $13.13 below that. WHEAT: Wheat futures are 37 to 40 cents lower at midday following the row crops' lead with harvest hitting the homestretch for winter wheat finally, while spring wheat should see less stress in the short term. Reactions to Black Sea developments have been more muted. Weekly crop progress should show winter wheat near 80% complete, with spring wheat conditions steady to slightly lower with maturity just ahead of average. Weekly export inspections improved a bit at 581,127 mt. The dollar is back to the top of the recent range, and Matif wheat is sharply lower as well. On the KC September Chart, the 20-day moving average at $8.41 was the first support area we fell through this morning, with $8.00 the next level down. David Fiala can be reached at [email protected] Follow him on Twitter @davidfiala (c) Copyright 2023 DTN, LLC. All rights reserved.