By Kirk Maltais

 

--Corn for July delivery rose 0.5% to $3.20 1/2 a bushel on the Chicago Board of Trade on Wednesday, with traders finding little else to get excited about other than a stronger Brazilian real, which makes U.S. grains more attractive.

--Soybeans for July delivery rose 0.2% to $8.48 1/2 a bushel.

--Wheat for July delivery fell 0.4% to $5.04 1/2 a bushel.

 

HIGHLIGHTS

 

Real Life: The Brazilian currency traded 1.2% higher, marking its fifth session in a row of gains. A stronger Brazilian currency may make China more willing to buy corn and soybeans from the U.S. instead of Brazil. How long the U.S. dollar weakens in comparison to other currencies remains to be seen. "When the dollar basket gets unwound, it tends to have a long tail, and we have just come off a three-year upside run on the greenback," said Charlie Sernatinger of ED&F Man Capital.

Crop Shop: About 70% of the U.S. corn crop is in good or excellent condition, according to the USDA's first corn condition report for the 2020/21 year. It's a turnaround from last year, when the agency hadn't even begun to survey the crop given the lateness of planting due to record wet weather.

Drifting Along: Outside movements generated by currencies, trading of grains futures was generally quiet. An early rally effort failed to garner sustained buying interest, AgResource said. "End users see no reason to chase rallies while speculators appear comfortable with their existing market bets."

 

INSIGHT

 

Rainy Season: Rain in the Black Sea region is "quite favorable for heading wheat and developing corn," according to agricultural weather research firm DTN. Scattered rains are expected in the Black Sea for the rest of the week, although dry conditions are expected for other parts of Europe, keeping U.S. wheat futures volatile.

Dynamic Duo: Archer Daniels Midland and Marfrig plan to launch a joint venture that will sell meat-alternative products in North and South America, expanding on an existing partnership in plant-based foods. The U.S. grain giant and the Brazilian meat processor have plenty of company in the burgeoning sector, which hasn't been slowed by Covid-19, and both are trying not to be disrupted by the trend. The JV will be called PlantPlus Foods, with ownership split 70-30 between Marfrig and ADM.

 

AHEAD

 

--The USDA will release its biannual Farm Labor report at 3 p.m. ET Thursday.

--The USDA will release its latest weekly export sales numbers at 8:30 a.m. ET Thursday.

--The USDA will release its monthly agricultural prices report at 3 p.m. ET Friday.

--The CFTC releases its weekly commitment of traders report at 3:30 p.m. ET Friday.

 

(Jacob Bunge contributed to this article.)

Write to Kirk Maltais at kirk.maltais@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

May 27, 2020 16:00 ET (20:00 GMT)

Copyright (c) 2020 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.