TOP STORIES
Burger King to Sell Whoppers With Reduced-Methane-Emissions Beef -- Market Talk
07:33 ET - Restaurant Brands International's Burger King says it is selling a limited supply of Whopper sandwiches with reduced-methane-emissions beef in some restaurants in Miami, New York, Portland and Los Angeles starting Tuesday. That means the cows from which the patties were sourced, on average, generated 33% less in methane emissions per day during the last three to four months of their lives. Burger King says the new diet it tested involves adding 100 grams of lemongrass leaves to the cows' daily veterinary-prescribed diet during their last four months. (dave.sebastian@wsj.com; @depsebastian)
STORIES OF INTEREST
Wheat Rises as Weather Threatens to Shrink Crop
Wheat for September delivery rose 0.4% to $5.26 3/4 a bushel on the Chicago Board of Trade Tuesday, with a decline in crop quality spearheading the notion among traders that U.S. wheat supplies may be tighter than those of corn or soybeans.
Soybeans for November delivery rose 0.3% to $8.77 1/2 a bushel.
Corn for December delivery fell 0.8% to $3.33 3/4 a bushel.
USDA Reports Over 1.7M Tons of Corn Sold to China -- Market Talk
09:30 ET - The USDA says that China has purchased 1.762M metric tons of US corn exports for delivery in the 2020/21 marketing year, as well as 190,000 tons of soybeans. China has now purchased over 3.1M tons of US corn over the course of the past few days--and considering that managed money funds still have a large short position in corn futures, the tide of sales could influence more closings of short positions, driving corn futures higher today. As of the CFTC's last commitment of traders report, funds are holding a net short position of just over 150,000 contracts. Overnight, December corn futures up 0.6%. (kirk.maltais@wsj.com; @kirkmaltais)
Resurgence in Covid-19 Could Derail Ethanol Recovery -- Market Talk
09:20 ET - An uptick in Covid-19 cases seen in many states could halt the recovery in ethanol production, says Tomm Pfitzenmaier of Summit Commodity Brokerage. "There is a lot of concern that if more states begin to shut back down over Covid concerns, that could affect gasoline demand and thus the demand for ethanol," says Pfitzenmaier. Back in late April, ethanol production hit its lowest level since reporting of data began in 2010, totaling 537,000 barrels per day according to EIA data. It has since recovered to 914,000 barrels per day, but that may soon hit a wall if more shutdowns are required to quell a resurgence in the disease, says Pfitzenmaier. The EIA will report updated ethanol production data on Wednesday. (kirk.maltais@wsj.com; @kirkmaltais)
FUTURES MARKETS
Hog Futures Follow Cutouts Down -- Market Talk
15:40 ET - Livestock futures follow cutout prices lower Tuesday, with hog futures on the CME closing down 2.6% to 49.925 cents per pound. Carcass cutout values fell $1.43 per hundredweight on Monday, to $67.52 per cwt. Ribs fell $6.59 per cwt, to $111.78 per cwt. A slowdown in restaurant reopenings due to the resurgence of Covid-19 is putting pressure on meat prices this week. Live cattle futures, meanwhile, fall 0.9% to 98.8 cents per pound. (kirk.maltais@wsj.com; @kirkmaltais)
CASH MARKETS
Estimated U.S. Pork Packer Margin Index - Jul 14
This report reflects U.S. pork packer processing margins. The margin indices
are calculated using current cash hog or carcass values and wholesale pork
cutout values and may not reflect actual margins at the plants. These
estimates reflect the general health of the industry and are not meant to
be indicative of any particular company or plant.
Source: USDA, based on Wall Street Journal calculations
All figures are on a per-head basis.
Date Standard Margin Estimated margin
Operating Index at vertically -
integrated operations
Jul 14 +$ 69.81 +$ 9.68
Jul 13 +$ 76.48 +$ 11.75
Jul 10 +$ 78.37 +$ 15.23
* 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 94.2
(Percent of Year-Ago) Select 100.9
USDA Boxed Beef, Pork Reports Wholesale choice-grade beef prices Tuesday fell $2.34 per hundred pounds, to $200.92, according to the USDA. Select-grade prices fell $1.03 per hundred pounds, to $190.85. The total load count was 147. Wholesale pork prices fell 96 cents, to $66.24 a hundred pounds, based on Omaha, Neb., price quotes.
