Market Matters Blog

Mississippi River Open for Business

Thu, 13 Jun 2013 17:05:00 GMT

Most of the locks in the upper Mississippi River that were closed last week by the Coast Guard were reopened by Monday, with Lock 17 and Lock 20 in the upper Mississippi reopening Tuesday.

Acreage Revisions Rare in June WASDE

Tue, 11 Jun 2013 19:42:00 GMT

The corn acreage picture is far from clear. Prevented planting dates have past, and some garden areas remain a soupy mess. USDA has revised acreage estimate in the June Supply and Demand reports before (mostly upwards), but will they do it again on Wednesday?

Barge Traffic Stopped in Upper Mississippi River

Thu, 06 Jun 2013 18:41:00 GMT

High water is causing problems for barge traffic.

Soybean Basis Weakens; Cash Price Remains Firm

Wed, 05 Jun 2013 18:21:00 GMT

Soybean basis continued to weaken in the past week.

CME Group Dishes Up More Options

Tue, 04 Jun 2013 21:01:00 GMT

CME Group will launch new hard red winter wheat options on July 1, pending CFTC approval. The move coincides with the pit's move to Chicago.

CME Group Dishes Up More Options

Tue, 04 Jun 2013 21:01:00 GMT

CME Group will launch new hard red winter wheat options on July 1, pending CFTC approval. The move coincides with the pit's move to Chicago.

More Countries Back Away from U.S. Wheat

Fri, 31 May 2013 22:18:00 GMT

More countries are backing away from U.S. wheat, but the futures markets hardly seemed to notice.

Gulf Wheat Exports, River Levels Rise

Fri, 31 May 2013 14:09:00 GMT

More wheat moved out of the Gulf in the week ended May 23.

Japan Suspends White Wheat Imports

Thu, 30 May 2013 18:51:00 GMT

Japan announced that its suspending white wheat imports from the U.S. after USDA officials announced the presence of genetically engineered wheat in an Oregon field.

Prevent Plant Complicates Corn Acreage Picture

Tue, 28 May 2013 21:55:00 GMT

Farmers in parts of Iowa and Minnesota are contemplating making a prevent planting claim, many of them for the first time. There are a myriad of factors behind the decision, but what does it mean to the market?

River Conditions, Corn Basis Levels Improve

Fri, 24 May 2013 15:40:00 GMT

River conditions are better, more barges are moving downstream.

Dramatic Drop in Soybean Basis

Thu, 23 May 2013 11:35:00 GMT

Higher cash prices have lured old-crop supplies out of farmers' hands, leading to a dramatic drop in soybean basis.

The Bernanke Bump and Tumble

Wed, 22 May 2013 20:02:00 GMT

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke and the minutes from May's Federal Open Markets Committee caused the stock market to see-saw, eventually closing 80 points lower.

Customer Protections, Trading Issues Take the Stage

Mon, 20 May 2013 14:37:00 GMT

It's been more than a year and a half after MF Global's collapse exposed structural flaws in how customer funds are protected, and Congress is finally expected to discuss potential fixes.

Soybean Basis Strong; Barge Freight Weak

Thu, 16 May 2013 19:08:00 GMT

Soybean basis continued to strengthen on tight old-crop supplies.