Tuesday Midday Dairy Market Summary - Butter Finds Buying Interest

OUTSIDE MARKETS SUMMARY:

CORN:	3 Higher
SOYBEANS:	5 Lower
SOYBEAN MEAL:	$2.00 Lower
LIVE CATTLE:	$2.07 Higher
DOW JONES:	255 Points Higher
NASDAQ:	397 Points Higher
CRUDE OIL:	$6.52 Lower

MIDDAY MARKET UPDATE:

The block cheese price decreased 0.75 cent to close at $1.5750 with four loads traded. The barrel cheese price remained unchanged at $1.5750 with no loads traded. The dry whey price remained unchanged at 71.00 cents with no loads traded. Class III futures were mixed after spot trading was finished, but slowly began to uncover buying interest, leaving only the April contract in negative territory. Futures trading volume remains light. The butter price increased 4.50 cents to close at $1.79 with 23 loads traded. Grade A nonfat dry milk increased 0.75 cent to close at $2.14 with one load traded. The market has yet to find buyer resistance. Class IV futures are 20-40 cents higher. Butter futures are 0.50 cent lower to 2.82 cents higher. Dry whey futures are 0.07 cent lower to 0.75 cent higher. Cheese futures are 0.80 cent lower to 0.80 cent higher.

Tuesday Morning Dairy Market Update - Limited Cash Movement Expected

OPENING CALLS:

Class III Milk Futures:	Mixed
Class IV Milk Futures:	Mixed
Butter Futures:	Mixed

OUTSIDE MARKET OPENING CALLS:

Corn Futures:	2 to 3 Higher
Soybean Futures:	2 to 3 Higher
Soybean Meal Futures:	$2 to $3 Higher
Wheat Futures:	4 to 5 Higher

MILK:

Milk futures are not expected to show much volatility unless there is a significant move in the spot market prices. The market fundamentals have not changed much, with milk production following seasonal levels. The current price outlook for the futures market will keep milk production strong. Cow numbers and milk production are expected to continue to increase. Feed prices are expected to remain reasonable with plentiful supplies. The weekly crop progress report showed corn 5% planted and soybeans 6% planted. Both are ahead of last year's pace.

CHEESE:

Spot cheese prices are expected to remain in a range. Buyers will purchase what they need with little reason to build inventory. Aging programs will be replenished, but inventory is expected to remain near or below the levels of a year ago. Cheese production will increase as milk receipts increase at the plant level.

BUTTER:

The spot butter price is in a downtrend and may have difficulty finding any upside potential. Manufacturers are moving butter to the market quickly rather than building inventory and speculating on higher prices over time. Strong milk production and higher butterfat content will keep output strong.

Monday Closing Dairy Market Update - Milk Futures Lack Trader Interest

GENERAL OVERVIEW:

Traders did not receive much price direction from the underlying cash. Class III futures did increase due to the minor increase of both block cheese and dry whey, but the gains lacked conviction. Class IV futures were lower with activity in only three contract months.

MILK:

Class III futures posted minor gains due to the increase in both block cheese and dry whey prices. Trading volume was very light as traders lacked a clear price direction. The market gives the impression that it will remain choppy for a time as milk production increases seasonally, keeping the market well supplied. It was unusual to see the amount of trading volume in a single Class IV contract. The June contract had a volume of 100 contracts traded. The only other contracts that were traded were the May and July contracts, with very light activity. The lower Class IV prices may be short-lived as the nonfat dry milk price continued to increase with no sign of buyer resistance.

AVERAGE CLASS III PRICES:

3 Month:	$17.37
6 Month:	$18.04
9 Month:	$18.24
12 Month:	$18.04

CHEESE:

The block cheese price broke below the uptrend that had developed since the middle of January. The price may move sideways at best for the time being, as the increasing supply of milk is being made available for manufacturing. Demand is good, but buyers may remain unaggressive due to the anticipation of sufficient supplies.

BUTTER:

The butter price remains in a downtrend and is having difficulty finding sold support. Demand is good, but the supply is sufficient, leaving buyers unaggressive in the spot market. Even though the price is low, buyers have not seen the need to bid higher to increase ownership of supplies and build inventory for later in the year.

OUTSIDE MARKETS SUMMARY:

May corn closed down .75 cent per bushel at $4.4025, May soybeans closed down 13.50 cents at $11.6225, and May soybean meal closed up $.10 per ton at $331.90. May Chicago wheat closed up 11.25 cents at $5.8225. June live cattle closed down $0.68 at $248.53. May crude oil is up $1.33 per barrel at $97.90. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is up 302 points at 48,218, with the NASDAQ up 281 points at 23,184.