Weekly Market Update 10-3-24

Here is your weekly market update from the Garden City Co-op Grain Origination Team.

Trivia

1. What kind of fish is Marlin in Finding Nemo?

2. Where were the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights stored during World War II?

Answers at the bottom.

Market News

U.S. PORT LABOR STRIKE: U.S. President Joe Biden stated on Thursday that he believed progress was being made in a port labor contract dispute. Dockworkers are on strike along the East Coast and Gulf Coast for the third day. The strike, the largest in almost fifty years, has caused delays in unloading container ships from Maine to Texas, leading to a shortage of goods and a buildup of ships outside major ports. Negotiations between the International Longshoremen's Association and employers have not been scheduled. According to Everstream Analytics, at least 45 container vessels that had been unable to unload were anchored outside the affected East Coast and Gulf Coast ports by Wednesday, up from just three before the strike began on Sunday. Everstream's Jena Santoro mentioned that many vessels are waiting for a prompt resolution to the strike action instead of diverting elsewhere. She also noted that if the stoppage continues, the vessel backlog could double by the end of the week, leading to congestion that could take weeks, if not months, to clear. This strike affects 36 ports, including those in New York, Baltimore, and Houston, which handle various goods. While economists believe the port closures will not immediately raise consumer prices, a prolonged stoppage may eventually impact prices, with food prices likely to be affected first.

CROP PROGRESS UPDATE: Corn crop conditions represented 64% good-excellent in this week’s crop progress and conditions report versus 65% last week. This week, 21% of the United States corn was reported as harvested versus 14% last week; within Kansas, 51% of the stat’s corn has been reported as harvested, compared to 41% harvested last week. Soybean crop conditions were reported as 64% good-excellent, remaining on track with last week’s reported values. Across the US, 26% of the world’s soybeans have been reported as harvested; Kansas representing only 11% of the total harvest value as of early this week. Sorghum conditions held steady this week at 45% reported good-excellent versus 44% last week. It looks like as of this week, 35% of all US sorghum crop has been reported as harvested, again, Texas leading the pack at 90% of the state harvested, followed by 34% in Oklahoma and 17% in Kansas.

EXPORT INSPECTIONS: No report for this week.

EXPORT SALES: We can tell fall harvest is officially in full-swing across the United States. New crop corn sales totaled 66.3 million bushels this week. Soybean sales remain mostly stable with the previous week at 53.0 million bushels, however fall 7% below the marketing year-to-date sales estimate needed to reach USDA targets. A total of 16.3 million bushels of wheat were reported as sold in the export sales market this week; no N/C sales were reported. Milo sales totaled 1.9 million bushels this week and fall 13% below the marketing year-to-date sales estimated needed to reach USDA targets.

USDA RECAP: USDA released the Quarterly Grain Stocks and Small Grains summary on Monday – mostly a snoozer of a report and came in close to trade expectations.  CORN: Old crop corn stocks in all positions on September 1, 2024 totaled 1.76 billion bushels, up 29% from last year. On-farm stored grain is up 29% from a year ago, while off-farm stocks are up 30%. Corn disappearance from June-August 2024 was 3.24 billion bushels, compared to 2.74 billion bushels during the same time frame last year. SOYBEANS: Old crop soybean stocks as of September 1^st totaled 342 million bushels, up 29% from 2023. Soybean stocks on-farm are up 54% from a year ago, while off-farm stocks are up 20% from last year. Indicated soybean disappearance from June-August totaled 628 million bushels, up 18% from the same time last year. WHEAT: All wheat production totaled 1.97 billion bushels, up 9% from last year. Average yield was estimated at 51.2 bushels per acre, up 2.5 bushels from last year. Winter wheat production was pegged at 1.35 billion bushels, up 9% from last year.




WEATHER: The Thursday forecast looks like a high of 87°F with winds coming out of the north/northeast at 15 mph. This evening appears to be clear skies, with a low temperature around 49°F and winds picking up to 16 to 21 mph. Friday is looking clear with a high temperature near 79°F and overnight temperatures dipping to the mid-50s. Our cool weather will be temporarily short-lived this week; Saturday is expected to be 95°F during the daytime hours, while the high is only about 53°F throughout the evening. The remainder of your weekend is sunny with a higher near 79°F, with overnight hours dipping into the upper-40s. Into the early part of next week, temperatures are looking to be around the mid- to upper-80s, with overnight temperatures hanging out just above the low-50s.

Trivia Answers

1. A Clownfish
2. Fort Knox