Grains were higher in overnight trade trying to recover from two days of steep losses. In outside markets, crude oil reversed direction drifting back to the $50 mark and the US dollar dipped lower as well.
Wheat has been hammered this week as Southern Hemisphere production comes online. Australia is thought to have a bumper crop it’s harvesting with expectations north of 30 MMT versus USDA at 24 MMT. Argentina is offering new-crop wheat prices at 12.5% protein for export at $10 a MT less than US Fob prices for 11.5% protein.
Argentine growers have planted 46% of the 19.6 million hectares (48.4 million acres) expected to be sown with soybeans in the 2016-17 season with the country's central farm belt enjoying good growing conditions, the Buenos Aires Grains Exchange said on Thursday.
Yesterday, USDA’s soy crush was reported to be at 175.9 MB a record large for October and for the first two months of the marketing year crush is up 3% over last year versus a USDA annual forecast of a 2.3% jump.
U.S. employers boosted hiring in November and the unemployment rate dropped to a more than nine-year low of 4.6%, making it almost certain that the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates later this month. Non-farm payrolls increased by 178,000 jobs last month. The solid gains in employment likely reflect rising confidence in the economy.
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