Grain Comments for 5-14-08

In a low volume trading session, corn and wheat settled lower with new crop soybeans posting the best gain.  Part of the strength in the beans came from spreading.  With the clear skies in the Midwest, traders are buying November soybeans and selling December corn.

The opposite of yesterday, corn futures sold off into the close.  The open weather pattern should allow producers to catch up with planting.  The only area of concern is in the Ohio Valley. A light rain event skips through the eastern section of the Corn Belt in the next two days with 30% coverage of less than one half of an inch. Demand has slowed down.  High prices and high freight rates limit the corn export movement. 

Wheat futures remain the weakest link in the grains.  With a new recent low, sell stops were hit and a second round of selling occurred.  The close was next to the lows of the session.  A slow demand pace and a promising harvest keeps the bulls away from the wheat market. India has bought a considerable amount of bushels from their producers.  This implies, they are out of the world wheat market.