Monday Closing Dairy Market Update - Nonfat Dry Milk Leads Class IV Higher

GENERAL OVERVIEW:

Nonfat Dry Milk futures rallied into the close today with anywhere from a 0.475 cent gain on the October contract to a 3.55 cent gain on the February contract. This led the way for Class IV to close unchanged to 43 cents higher.

MILK:

In addition to a futures rally, Nonfat Dry Milk also saw a small appreciation in value in the cash market of 0.25 cents higher, to close at $2.27. That is the highest price NFDM has seen since May 18, just shy of the $2.4950 record high set in early May. Class IV has been responding well to the rally in NFDM, yet butter has limited how high it can go. Class III was mixed today with some pressure on the October and November contracts, much like we've seen in the past week, yet still has strength in the deferred futures contracts.

AVERAGE CLASS III PRICES:

3 Month:	$15.87
6 Month:	$16.48
9 Month:	$16.79
12 Month:	$17.04

CHEESE:

Cheese futures saw slight gains today on nearly every board month outside of October. The cash market is still gaining for cheddar cheese blocks, up another 0.5 cents today, but barrels have been unchanged for weeks.

BUTTER:

Butter futures were mostly lower today, with only the October showing slight gains. The deferred month were 1 to 2.25 cents lower on the day. Overall supply of cream still suppresses any long-term chance of a rally.

OUTSIDE MARKETS SUMMARY:

December corn closed up 3.25 cents per bushel at $4.8300, November soybeans closed down 4.25 cents at $12.8775 and December soybean meal closed up $3.10 per ton at $368.70. December Chicago wheat closed up 1.25 cents at $6.7225.

December live cattle closed down $0.45 at $226.60. November crude oil is up 1.89 per barrel at $93.74. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is up 195 points at 51,850 and the NASDAQ is down 120 points at 27,245.

Monday Midday Dairy Market Summary - Mixed Dairy Trade

OUTSIDE MARKETS SUMMARY:

CORN:	2 Higher
SOYBEANS:	6 Lower
SOYBEAN MEAL:	$4.60 Higher
LIVE CATTLE:	$0.375 Lower
DOW JONES:	220 Points Lower
NASDAQ:	117 Points Lower
CRUDE OIL:	$1.85 Higher

MIDDAY MARKET UPDATE:

The block cheese price increased 0.5 cents to close at $1.3900 with four loads traded. The barrel cheese price remained unchanged at $1.4525 with no loads traded. The dry whey price was unchanged, closing at 86.0 cents with no loads traded, holding out just shy of the record. Class III futures are mixed from 3 cents lower to 20 cents higher. The butter price fell 0.5 cents Monday, closing at $1.270 with 18 loads traded. There were 49 unfilled bids and five uncovered offers remaining. Grade A nonfat dry milk increased 0.25 cents to close at $2.27 with five loads traded. Class IV futures are 38 cents higher on the November contract -- the only contract that has been traded so far. Butter futures are 0.325 to 2.25 cents lower. Dry whey futures are unchanged to 0.25 cents higher. Cheese futures are mixed from 0.2 cents lower to 0.5 cents higher. Nonfat dry milk futures are 0.475 to 3.975 cents higher. 

Monday Morning Dairy Market Update - Lower Butter and Cheese Prices Expected

OPENING CALLS:

Class III Milk Futures:	Mixed
Class IV Milk Futures:	Mixed
Butter Futures:	1 to 1.5 Higher

OUTSIDE MARKET OPENING CALLS:

Corn Futures:	1 to 2 Higher
Soybean Futures:	7 to 9 Lower
Soybean Meal Futures:	$0.10 to $0.80 Lower
Wheat Futures:	3 to 4 Lower

MILK:

Friday's WASDE report highlighted the most recent Milk Production report's expectations of lower cow numbers in 2026, and lower output per cow for both 2026 and 2027 compared to the September report. This still projects milk production for 2026 at 236.9 billion pounds, a 5.5-billion-pound increase over 2025. Expectations for 2027, while lower, are still sitting at 238.4 billion pounds, an increase of 1.7 billion pounds over 2026 projections. Overnight trade has Class III futures up 4 cents on the October contracts, yet November and December are down 21 to 25 cents.

CHEESE:

The WASDE report lowered cheese price expectations for 2026 and 2027, with $1.525 per pound for this year being 26.53 cents lower than 2025 and 34.09 cents lower than 2024. Cheese in the cash market had a big win last week, increasing block prices 6 cents by Friday. Barrels have not moved in a few weeks but still carry a premium to blocks.

BUTTER:

USDA also lowered butter exports on Friday's WASDE report, which caused a drop in butter price expectations on this month's report of 3.5 cents per pound for 2026 coming in at $1.56, a drop of 66.02 cents from 2025 and $1.327 from 2024. 2027 projected butter price was also decreased from the September report at $1.55 per pound.