GRAIN HIGHLIGHTS : Top Stories of the Day

TOP STORIES:

Wheat Drops as Rain Hits the U.S. Plains

Wheat for March delivery fell 3.4% to $5.96 1/2 a bushel, on the Chicago Board of Trade Tuesday, correcting from the past three days of upticks as rain hit growing areas in the U.S. Midwest. Corn for March delivery fell 1.2% to $4.27 1/2 a bushel. Soybeans for January delivery fell 0.6% to $11.84 a bushel.

Rainfall in the U.S. Plains applied pressure on U.S. wheat futures Wednesday."Good rain fell across the US soft red wheat production areas and advancement of the Australian wheat harvest weighed on prices," said Terry Reilly of Futures International. Moderate showers are seen in the Midwest today, followed by dryness in the eastern portion of the Midwest over the weekend, according to agricultural weather firm DTN.

Smucker to Benefit from Changes to Consumer Behavior -- Market Talk

1637 ET - JM Smucker, the company behind Jif peanut butter, fruit spreads and Uncrustables sandwiches, expects to profit as consumers eat more at home during the coronavirus pandemic, Chief Financial Officer Tucker Marshall said Tuesday. "The increased at-home consumption really [presents] another opportunity for our company, with consumers creating new behaviors that we expect to be lasting," Marshall said. Smucker reported net sales of $2.03 billion for the three months ended Oct. 31, up 4% compared with the prior year quarter. ([e-mail]; @Nina_Trentmann)

STORIES OF INTEREST:

Deere Sees Rising Sales of Farm, Construction Equipment -- Market Talk

1012 ET - Deere expects to outperform the broader farm and construction machinery markets next year. The company predicts worldwide sales of its farm and landscaping equipment will rise 10%-15% in fiscal 2021. That's higher than the company's regional sales outlooks for the farm equipment industry. It's forecasting a 5%-10% increase in sales of its construction and forestry equipment, even after predicting a 5% drop in industry-wide sales of construction equipment in North America. Shares down 1.9% at $256.65. ([e-mail]; @bob_tita)

Wakefern's ShopRite To Pay Store Workers Hazard Pay -- Market Talk

1541 ET - Wakefern Food's ShopRite chain agreed to provide retroactive hazard pay to its store workers, according to the Union Food and Commercial Workers International Union. Under the agreement, the grocer will pay an additional dollar per hour for all hours worked between July 26 and Aug. 22. It will cover nearly 50,000 ShopRite employees represented by the union. Many food retailers ended bonus pay over the summer, prompting union groups and workers to fight for its restoration. ([e-mail]; @_jaewonkang)

US Ethanol Inventories Soar -- Market Talk

11:01 ET - Inventories of ethanol in the US have shot up this week, rising to their highest level since late August, according to EIA data. Ethanol inventories jumped 663,000 barrels to 20.87M barrels, the EIA says, far more than previously expected by analysts amid a resurgent coronavirus that is again taking people off of the road. Meanwhile, ethanol production also rose, climbing 28,000 barrels a day to 990,000 barrels a day, their highest since late March, when the first wave of the pandemic sent ethanol plants into shutdowns. Corn futures on the CBOT are down 1%. ([e-mail]; @kirkmaltais)

THE MARKETS:

Hog Futures Rise on Light Volumes -- Market Talk

15:08 ET - Lean hog futures trading on the CME rose on light volumes, with the most-active contract rising 1.4% to 67.675 cents per pound. Pork cutouts rose slightly Wednesday, with the pork carcass cutout rising 56 cents per hundredweight to $78.14 per cwt, according to USDA data. Meanwhile, the live cattle contract rose 0.2% to $1.14175 per pound on higher volume -- making it 3.5% that the cattle futures contract has risen this month. The CME will be closed for Thanksgiving tomorrow, reopening for half of the day Friday. ([e-mail]; @kirkmaltais)

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

11-25-20 1741ET