Grains and Cotton Slide as Cattle Rebound Into Friday Close

Overview

• Futures finished Friday with soybeans, corn, wheat and cotton lower while live cattle rallied and hogs slipped, capping a volatile two-day stretch for U.S. agriculture markets.
• Large funds cut bullish bets during the week, according to CFTC data released Friday, with corn net longs reduced by 44,442 contracts and soybeans by 6,802, while cotton net longs increased and spec positions in cattle and hogs were trimmed.
• USDA export reports showed soft demand signals this week as old-crop soybean sales hit a marketing-year low and corn bookings fell to one of the smallest tallies of the season, even as wheat notched moderate old-crop sales led by Indonesia and the Philippines.
• Processing data added mixed cues after NOPA said April soybean crush reached 211.86 million bushels, an April record, while the Kansas Wheat Quality Tour pegged a low 38.9 bpa average yield and 218 million bushels of production, and Brazil’s agency CONAB lifted soybean and corn output estimates.
• Policy and health headlines added crosscurrents as a Trump–Xi meeting produced no detailed purchase schedule, China renewed export licenses for more than 400 U.S. beef plants, and APHIS reported 1,831 active New World Screwworm cases in Mexico near the U.S. border, factors that shaped divergent moves in cattle and hog markets.