Financial
Dow off 45, S&P down 3 and NASDAQ steady
WTI crude down $.43 at $97.51
Gold off $16
Dollar index down 7
Employment expected at 7.8%
Jobless claims rise 38,000 to 368,000
Bernanke expresses concern with slow economic growth
Livestock
Cattle end steady
Cash $126 up $3
Boxed beef has fallen $7 recently
Quiet advance in hogs
Pork cutout down $1.12
Grain and soybeans
Corn steady with beans off 9 and wheat 8
Argentine dryness must be watched
Soybeans exports sales for 13-14 867,000 with China taking 690,000 and adding 222,000 Wednesday night
10:07 update
Dow wavers on mixed data up 29 and off 22 early
Cattle meander ahead of inventory report
Cheap cuts featured ham shanks and 79% ground beef were on the front page
Slight easing in grains and soybeans
Brazilian government to reapply 25% biofuels mandated blend on May 1 7o support the struggling ethanol industry
Morning Comment
Financial
Jobless claims up 38,000 to 368,000 versus 350,000 expected
Unemployment guesses 7.8% Friday
ADP jobs 192,000 at an eleven month high yesterday
Fed stays with bond buying and offers little new direction for the economy
Dow off 44 Wednesday at 13,910 with lower call today
Dow up 7% this month
Chicago PMI expected to ease a bit
German bonds higher and DAX off .5%
Industrials metals like nickel rise
Gold not much changed
WTI crude PT down $.43 at $97.51
Brent $114.74 holds gains
Dollar index 79.29 at recent low with support at 78
Livestock
Texas and Kansas trades at $125 up $3 but $3 under futures as deliveries approach
Offers at $127
Boxed beef levels off
Inventory report Friday with -2% expected
Lowest cattle numbers since 1952
1975 cattle weights 600# versus today’s 800 #
Lots under 1000 head decline
Beef exports a routine 12,000 tons
Pork cutout 56 loads with carcass off $1.12, loin’s $1.82 and hams steady
Slaughter up 4000 versus last week in cattle and 22,000 hogs
Cold temps impair hog movement
Grain and soybeans
March corn support now at $7.35 and March beans $14.60 is close at hand
Watch Argentine and Brazilian crop updates because of dryness in Argentina and SW Brazil
Weekly ethanol production down again and off 11% year to date
Vicksburg still restricted with 1000 barges hung up
Weekly export sales:293,000 tons of wheat off 32% on four week average, corn 186,000 poor again and soybean 386,000 (China 292,000) and 867,000 of next year (690,000 China)