GRAIN HIGHLIGHTS : Top Stories of the Day

TOP STORIES:

Wheat Futures Fall as Traders Take Profits

Wheat for December delivery fell 1% to $5.58 1/4 a bushel on the Chicago Board of Trade on Wednesday, with grains traders selling off wheat after it rallied to a four-month high in the previous session. Corn for December delivery rose 0.2% to $3.58 3/4 a bushel. Soybeans for November delivery rose 0.8% to $9.62 a bushel.

Wheat traders took profits after prices rallied for two days. Forecasts of a larger Russian crop also prompted selling. "Wheat was down all day long on more increases in Russian crop estimates and profit taking, throw in some intermarket spreading for good measure," said Charlie Sernatinger of ED&F Man Capital.

Historic Aid Payments to Prop Up Struggling US Farm Belt -- Market Talk

13:08 ET - An historical cash infusion into the US farm economy will spare farmers and ranchers from falling income from commodity sales spurred in part by the coronavirus pandemic. Cash receipts for farm goods are expected to drop more than 3% this year, led by an 8% decline in receipts for broilers, cattle and calves, hogs and milk. Receipts for corn, wheat, cotton, and soybeans are also expected to drop, while receipts for fruits and nuts will rise. But a record $37B in payments from the Trump administration will boost farm income, and push payments to 36% of that income, the highest share in nearly two decades. The USDA meanwhile is considering further aid payments as farmers struggle with low commodity prices and a presidential election looms. ([e-mail]; @jessenewman13)

Impossible Catching Up to Beyond Meat in Supermarkets, JPM Says -- Market Talk

0925 ET - As the plant-based burger battles shift to grocery stores, JPMorgan says Beyond Meat's main competitor is catching up. Soy protein-based patty maker Impossible Foods lagged Beyond's push into retail meat cases, and in April its retail volume was just 1.9% the size of Beyond's, according to JPM analysts; four months later, following a major supermarket push by Impossible, the company's retail product volume is two-thirds as big as Beyond's. Among restaurants, JPM is "increasingly confident" that major fast-food chains are not going to be adding Beyond's burgers to menus in a substantial way for the rest of this year. ([e-mail]; @jacobbunge)

STORIES OF INTEREST:

Allendale Forecasts Limited Production Loss to US Crops -- Market Talk

11:17 ET - Commodity brokerage Allendale says it's forecasting the 2020 US corn yield at 178.3 bushels per acre and soybean yields at 51.9 bushels per acre. Both of these totals are down from the USDA's August estimate of 181.8 bpa and 53.3 bpa, respectively, but Allendale's projections show only a limited movement from adverse weather including drought in the Midwest and a wind storm last month. ([e-mail]; @kirkmaltais)

Could Restaurant Chains Gain Share Post-Pandemic? -- Market Talk

13:13 ET - The restaurant industry is "really damaged on a more permanent basis," due to the pandemic and failures in Washington to support what is a big part of the broader economy, Tony Roth, chief investment officer at Wilmington Trust Investment Advisors, tells WSJ reporters on a call. The question the firm is still analyzing is whether smaller restaurants will reemerge or if over time there will be a shift to bigger chains. "You're not going to see people staying home and not going out [to eat], but there's going to be a deficit of options," he says. That comment supports, in theory, stronger demand at companies that get through the current crisis. ([e-mail]; @MicahMaidenberg)

US Ethanol Inventories Build, Production Slips -- Market Talk

1127 ET - US ethanol inventories are on the rise, the EIA says. Ethanol stockpiles are at 20.88 million barrels, the EIA says -- an uptick of 473,000 barrels from last week. Meanwhile, US ethanol production fell by 9,000 barrels per day, totaling 922,000 barrels per day. For corn traders, the report is bearish, as it indicates that a post-coronavirus recovery to the ethanol industry is on hold. For inventories, this week's figure is the highest they've been since mid-June. ([e-mail], @kirkmaltais)

THE MARKETS:

Hog Futures Close at 3-Month High -- Market Talk

15:17 ET - Most-active lean hog futures trading on the CME finished up 2.5% to 56.4 cents per pound. It's the highest that hog futures have finished since June 2, and is the third straight session that hog futures have finished higher. They've risen 5.7% this week alone. It's also the third straight day that pork cutout prices have risen, with the carcass price up another $1.01 per hundredweight to $75.55 per cwt. Meanwhile, live cattle futures finished trading Wednesday down 1% to $1.04475 per pound. ([e-mail]; @kirkmaltais)