Welcome to Markets Desk, here's where things stand heading into the weekend.
Coffee markets are pushing higher for a second straight session, with July arabica settling up more than one and a quarter percent and robusta surging nearly four percent. The driver is Brazil, where persistent rainfall is delaying the harvest and tightening near-term supply expectations. Forecasters are calling for continued moderate to heavy rain, keeping the pressure on.
Turning to grains, the wheat complex drifted lower into the close, with Chicago soft red winter contracts shedding two to three cents on the day. Kansas City hard red winter followed suit. That said, July Chicago still managed a gain of four and a half cents on the week, so the selling Friday looks more like end-of-week profit-taking than a directional shift.
And in a major media development, the Justice Department has cleared the Paramount Skydance and Warner Bros Discovery merger without conditions. The combined entity carries a commitment of one hundred eleven billion dollars, making it one of the largest media consolidations in recent memory. Paramount Skydance edged out Netflix in what had been a closely watched acquisition battle.
That's the tape. Markets Desk, signing off the floor.
