Friday Market Watch - June, August Live Cattle Contracts Score New Highs Ahead of Weekend; Grains, Soy Complex End Higher

LIVESTOCK:

The live cattle complex rounded out the week strong while the lean hog and feeder cattle markets both closed lower. Hog prices closed lower on the Daily Direct Afternoon Hog Report, down $3.77 with a weighted average of $75.69 on 4,185 head.

From Friday to Friday, livestock futures scored the following changes: June live cattle up $1.63, August live cattle up $0.88; August feeder cattle down $1.17, September feeder cattle down $0.85; June lean hogs down $6.95, July lean hogs down $8.35; July corn up $0.50, September corn up $0.35.

More: Friday Closing Livestock Market Update - June, August Live Cattle Contracts Score New Highs Ahead of Weekend

GRAINS:

July corn closed up 13 1/4 cents and December corn was up 18 1/2 cents. July soybeans closed up 13 1/4 cents and November soybeans were up 17 1/4 cents. July KC wheat closed up 1 1/4 cents, July Chicago wheat was up 11 3/4 cents and September Minneapolis wheat was up 11 1/4 cents.

For the week:

July corn closed up 49 1/2 cents and December corn was up 34 3/4 cents. July soybeans closed up 30 cents and November soybeans were up 14 cents. July KC wheat closed down 5 cents, July Chicago wheat was up 11 cents and September Minneapolis wheat was up 12 1/4 cents.

DAIRY:

Block cheese price declined 4.25 cents, closing at $1.4775 with nine loads traded. The three-day price increase has been eliminated as buyers see plenty of supply available for purchase. Buyers continue to purchase supply without having to be aggressive. This may be detrimental later in the year as buyers may not need to be as aggressive when demand seasonally increases. Barrel cheese price declined a penny, closing at $1.49 with seven loads traded. Dry whey price remained unchanged at 27.50 cents with five loads traded. Class III futures are taking a beating again with contracts from 26 cents lower to 3 cents higher. Butter price gained 1.25 cents, closing at $2.453 with one load traded. Grade A nonfat dry milk price remained unchanged at $1.17 with no loads traded. Class IV futures are 6 cents lower to 3 cents higher. Butter futures are 0.45 cent lower to 1.15 cents higher. Dry whey futures are unchanged to 0.52 cent lower.

More: Friday Closing Dairy Market Update - Not a Good End to the Week 

FORAGE: This Week's Hay Markets (Forage Fodder Blog)

OUTSIDE MARKETS:

The U.S. Dollar Index is down 0.03 at 104.22. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is up 304.29 points at 33,068.94. June gold is up $2.00 at $1,945.70, July silver is up $0.50 at $23.41 and July copper is up $0.0840. July crude oil is up $0.69 at $72.52, July ultra-low sulfur diesel is up $0.0148, July RBOB gasoline is up $0.0350 and July natural gas is down $0.062.