Well the dead cat didn’t spend much time in the air – Chicago wheat dropped back 9.5¢ to 501 1/4¢, KC -9 1/4¢ to 417 1/4¢, Minny -5.5¢ to 496¢, and Matif unch at 179.25€.  Corn gained a quarter cent while beans dropped a cent and a half to 874 3/4¢ (Winnipeg up $1.4, Matif +0.25€).   DOW is up another 185 points.  With the dollar weakness still holding, the AUD is trading up to 72.3¢. the CAD $1.332, and the EUR $1.188.  US/Canadian politics heated up after US President Trump re-imposed tariffs on Canadian aluminum.  Retaliatory actions are expected by Canada, but no details yet.  More comments have also come out of the US about China’s progress, or lack thereof, by many standards, in meeting trade deal agreements, with Lighthizer expressing concerns over the small activity to date.  We expect to see more headlines there as the review meetings approach.

There was another set of flash sales in the US; two new crop bean boats to China.  We also saw regular export sales out, for the prior week, with confirmation of a Chinese SRW sale in the mix. A prior HRW sale to China was redirected to Indonesia, so it is something of a wash in net terms.  Overall wheat sales at 600,000t were largely as expected, as with corn at 2.6 Mt new crop, including most of the recent Chinese flashes, and beans at 1.4Mt new crop.  A lot of export business in that mix, but most of it was already known from the sales reporting.

Otherwise, it has been very quiet recently on the global front with markets looking mostly towards next week’s USDA reports.  Down in Argentina though, the Buenos Aires grains exchange has penciled wheat area down to 6.5 million hectares from previous forecast 6.8 after recent dry weather, the forecasts for which are also not optimistic.

AUSTRALIAN COMMODITY MARKETS

Australian markets continue to slide lower on the new crop as moisture comes.  Overall business has been on the quiet side though, with many waiting to see final rainfall numbers. Have a safe and muddy weekend all.

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