TOP STORIES:

Corn Finds New Highs as Rainfall Misses Dry Areas

Corn for July delivery rose 1.7% to $7.31 1/2 a bushel, its highest close since March 2013, on the Chicago Board of Trade Friday as U.S. rainfall this weekend may come up short in quenching the driest crop areas. Soybeans for July delivery rose 1.3% to $15.98 a bushel, its highest close since September 2012. Wheat for July delivery rose 1.3% to $7.63 1/4 a bushel, its highest close since February 2013.

Rainfall hitting the U.S. Midwest this weekend appears likely to miss the dry crop-growing areas that need rain the most in the Northern Plains.

"Upcoming weekend rains are seen mostly sliding south into the heart of the belt, with a similar pattern for the 6- to 10-day period as well," said Arlan Suderman of StoneX. According to Mr. Suderman, increasing dryness is being seen in areas of Minnesota and Iowa in addition to the Dakotas.

The impact of this dryness will be evident in the USDA's next crop progress report, due Monday at 4 p.m. EDT.

Labor Shortage a 'Crisis' for Food Distributors -- Market Talk

1109 ET - A shortage of workers is making it hard for food distributors to deliver goods to restaurants reopening their dining rooms in the wake of the pandemic. Steve Grinstead, CEO of distributor Fresh Edge Foods, laid off some 800 employees last year, and said it's tough now to rebuild his workforce as many workers remain on unemployment benefits. Competition for warehouse workers from Amazon.com and other ecommerce companies is also fierce. Short-staffing recently prompted Grinstead to pick orders and load trucks himself during overnight shifts to ensure timely deliveries to customers. "The entire supply chain is in crisis right now because we don't have the people to mount the re-growing of our businesses," he said. (jesse.newman@wsj.com; @jessenewman13)

China Locks in 1.4M Metric Ton Purchase of US Corn -- Market Talk

10:15 ET - The USDA confirmed this morning that China is still in the market for US corn, with the nation buying 1.36M metric tons for delivery in the 2021/22 marketing year. The fresh buying interest, confirms speculation among traders this week of China's renewed intentions to buy US grain exports. The move comes as some analysts are forecasting China's appetite for export goods as a whole may be at its apex. "Looking ahead, we think trade volumes are probably close to a cyclical peak," says Julian Evans-Pritchard of Capital Economics, in reference to the 32.3% growth in export sales to China year-over-year in April. However, commodities imports to China fell in April, which may eventually weigh on commodity prices as the year continues, the firm says. (kirk.maltais@wsj.com; @kirkmaltais)

STORIES OF INTEREST:

Grocers, Restaurants to Suppliers: Hurry Up, Make More

Friction between food retailers and their suppliers is adding costs across the food chain.

Big buyers including Walmart Inc. and Sysco Corp. are fining suppliers over infractions like late or incomplete orders. Retailers excused such penalties for months during the pandemic when surging demand led to widespread shortages.

Beyond Meat Looks to Backyard Grills for Rebound -- Market Talk

0955 ET - Backyard grills may hold the key to plant-based burger maker Beyond Meat's rebound. With a long way to go before lodging and recreation sales return to pre-pandemic levels, Credit Suisse analysts say that to achieve targeted 2Q sales, Beyond will need to heavily promote the new "3.0" version of its burgers and land its products in more grocery store meat cases ahead of the summertime grilling season. Beyond shares are under pressure again early Friday, trading 6% lower after per-share earnings undershot analysts' expectations for the fourth straight quarter, according to FactSet. (jacob.bunge@wsj.com; @jacobbunge)

Big Drop in Brazilian Corn Production Expected -- Market Talk

12:17 ET - Analysts surveyed by WSJ are forecasting next week's WASDE report will show Brazilian corn production dropping this year--down nearly 6M tons from last year to 103.4M metric tons. Soybean production, meanwhile, is expected to rise slightly, up 100,000 tons to 136.1M tons. Argentine soybean production is expected to drop 800,000 tons to 46.7M tons--with corn production up 400,000 tons to 47.4M. The WASDE is due out Wednesday at noon eastern time. (kirk.maltais@wsj.com; @kirkmaltais)

THE MARKETS:

Lean Hog Futures Slide Even as Cutouts Rise -- Market Talk

1523 ET - Lean hog futures trading on the CME finished down 1.3% to $1.132 per pound. It's the first day that hog futures have traded lower in a week -- this despite pork cutout prices being on the rise today. Midday, the USDA reported that carcass cutout prices rose $3.36 per hundredweight to $117.22 per cwt, while other cutouts across the board rose, with the exception of hams. Pork butt rose $4.10 per cwt as of midday today, while pork bellies rose $22.16 per cwt. Earlier this week, hog futures rose over where cattle futures were trading at -- the first time in over 20 years that's happened. Cattle futures closed up 0.8% to $1.1665 per pound. (kirk.maltais@wsj.com; @kirkmaltais)

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

05-07-21 1747ET