TOP STORIES 



  Shake Shack 2Q Demand Hampered By Closed Dining Rooms, Protests 


  Shake Shack Inc. said plummeting customer traffic dragged down demand and protests crimped sales for its fiscal second quarter. 


  The burger chain on Tuesday reported total revenue of $91.8 million for the quarter ended June 24. Comparable sales declined 49% in the period compared with last year, with customer traffic falling about 60%. 


  STORIES OF INTEREST 


  Corn Drops as Weather Bets Waver 


  Corn for December delivery fell 1% to $3.52 1/2 a bushel on the Chicago Board of Trade Tuesday, with grains traders less optimistic that hot weather would put a dent on abundant crop supplies. 


  Soybeans for November delivery fell 0.4% to $9.02 1/2 a bushel. 


  Wheat for September delivery rose 0.4% to $4.95 1/4 a bushel. 


  Wasde Expected to Show Abundant Grain Supplies -- Market Talk 


  12:59 ET - The USDA's monthly Wasde report is due out noon ET Friday, and in it grains traders are expecting to see updated production, stockpile and yield data for corn and soybeans. Overall, this updated data is expected to show that US crop supplies will stay abundant this year, even with hot weather this summer drying out soil while crops attempt to grow. "Don't look for anything bullish in the numbers Friday with trend yields likely to project large corn supplies and adequate bean supplies," says Doug Bergman of RCM Alternatives. Corn and soybean futures on CBOT are both trading lower. (kirk.maltais@wsj.com; @kirkmaltais) 


  Canadian Railway Moves Record Amount of Grain -- Market Talk 


  14:25 ET - Canadian National Railway says that it moved a record amount of Canadian grains in the first half of 2020--transporting 15M metric tons of grain for the year through June 30. The company says it's on pace to transport 26.9M tons by the end of the year, which would break last years' record of 26.5M tons. "From Canadian farmers to port terminals, these achievements are a testament to the strength of our supply chain and its ability to meet the continued strong global demand for grain," says James Cairns, the company's senior vice president of Rail Centric Supply Chain. CN's record performance comes despite the coronavirus pandemic impacting demand for grains globally. (kirk.maltais@wsj.com; @kirkmaltais) 


  FUTURES MARKETS 


  Livestock Futures End Day On Downside -- Market Talk 


  15:31 ET - Livestock futures finish lower--with August live cattle futures on the CME down 0.1% at $1.00 per pound and August lean hog futures off 0.8% to 48.875 cents per pound. Hog futures follow the trajectory of pork cutouts in moving lower--according to the USDA, cutouts altogether have been on the decline this week. Primal loin fell over $3 per hundredweight yesterday, according to the USDA--leaving loin prices at $66.36 per cwt. Hog futures are off 15% in the past month. (kirk.maltais@wsj.com; @kirkmaltais) 


   CASH MARKETS 

 
Estimated U.S. Pork Packer Margin Index - Jul 7 
 
 This report reflects U.S. pork packer processing margins. The margin indices 
are calculated using current cash hog or carcass values and wholesale pork 
cutout values and may not reflect actual margins at the plants. These 
estimates reflect the general health of the industry and are not meant to 
be indicative of any particular company or plant. 
Source: USDA, based on Wall Street Journal calculations 
All figures are on a per-head basis. 
 
Date     Standard Margin       Estimated margin 
         Operating Index         at vertically - 
                             integrated operations 
 
Jul  7       +$ 64.61            +$  0.63 
Jul  6       +$ 71.32            +$  5.58 
Jul  2       +$ 77.68            +$ 10.16 
 
* Based on Iowa State University's latest estimated cost of production. 
A positive number indicates a processing margin above the cost of 
production of the animals. 
 
Beef-O-Meter 
This report compares the USDA's latest beef carcass composite 
values as a percentage of their respective year-ago prices. 
 
                                  Beef 
          For Today              Choice   94.4 
      (Percent of Year-Ago)      Select  101.2 
 
USDA Boxed Beef, Pork Reports 


  Wholesale choice-grade beef prices Tuesday fell 16 cents per hundred pounds, to $205.30, according to the USDA. Select-grade prices fell 13 cents per hundred pounds, to $196.84. The total load count was 124. Wholesale pork prices fell $2.30, to $62.03 a hundred pounds, based on Omaha, Neb., price quotes.