02/08/06 Wheat futures lower; cattle mixed

Marketline February 8, 2006 Wheat futures closed lower Tuesday but not before Kansas City hit another new high. Brian Hoops of Midwest Market Solutions in Yankton, South Dakota, says there wasn't any real change in fundamentals other than expectations for tomorrow's USDA supply and demand reports. Hoops says grains got spillover pressure from sharply lower energy and metals markets. Hoops: "And all those markets are significant because they were all supported by big funds and inflationary buying over the last thirty to sixty days. When those markets turned lower some of the index funds also bailed on their longs and so a day you could call of profit taking or just long liquidation." Today the market may get some results of that Iraqi tender. On Tuesday March Chicago wheat was down 3 ¼ cents at 3-51 ¾. March corn down 4 ¾ at 2-18. Portland cash white wheat steady to three cents higher at mostly 3-50. August new crop higher at 3-62 to 3-69. Club wheat $4. PNW HRW 11.5 percent protein lower at 4-73. Dark northern spring 14% protein lower at 5-29. Export barley 102 dollars a ton. Cattle futures were mixed Tuesday. Traders are said to be waiting to see if packers can press fed cattle another dollar lower this week or feedlots can hold them steady. While fed cattle supplies are seen as seasonally tight into early spring, packers are dealing with sliding beef prices. April live cattle down a dime at 89-78. March feeders down eight at 107-97. March Class III milk up six cents at 12-04. I'm Bob Hoff and that's Marketline on the Northwest Ag Information Network. Now this.