Welcome to Markets Desk, here's where things stand heading into the close.
Lean hog futures slipped Thursday, losing between thirty cents and just over a dollar across most contracts as USDA's national base hog price came in at seventy-eight dollars and ninety-five cents, down seventy cents from Wednesday. The CME Lean Hog Index also continued its slide, falling another forty-five cents to eighty-two forty-seven, reflecting softening cash market conditions even as USDA flagged tighter overall hog inventory.
Turning to the grain complex, wheat faced broad pressure across all three exchanges. Chicago soft red winter fell as much as five and a quarter cents, Kansas City hard red winter dropped up to six and a half cents, and Minneapolis spring wheat was the weakest of the bunch, down eight to nine cents at the bell. Harvest-driven supply concerns and a firmer dollar weighed on the complex throughout the session.
Cotton, meanwhile, managed to hold its ground and then some, closing with gains of up to sixty points in the nearby contracts. Crude oil's two-dollar-sixty rally gave natural fibers some indirect support, and traders kept a close eye on the US-China meeting, though no material trade developments emerged from those discussions before the close.
That's the tape. Markets Desk, signing off the floor.
