In the overnight session the grains were mixed with corn down 1 3/4 cents, soybeans down 3 3/4 cents and wheat up 1 1/4 cents going into this morning’s pause in trading. The U.S dollar is trading mostly unchanged and crude oil is off .25 percent.
Concerns about the reaction to the bird flu have the corn market nervous that feed use for hens could start to slow. Although the number of birds killed by the flu may not directly affect the feed use in a big way, the reaction by importers could hurt the demand for U.S poultry. Mexico in response to the growing cases of bird flu has stopped all imports of live birds and eggs from the state of Iowa.
Precipitation throughout the Midwest is expected over the weekend and again in the middle of next week. Heavier precipitation in the western grain belt is forecast later in the 11-15 day outlook. The U.S is now 9 percent planted for corn, just behind the four year average of 13 percent at this point of the season. There are no significant planting delays expected in the forecast. The plains should continue to receive precipitation throughout next week which helps limit the stress on the winter wheat crop.
