OPENING CALLS:
| Class III Milk Futures: | Steady to 5 Lower |
| Class IV Milk Futures: | 5 to 8 Lower |
| Butter Futures: | Steady to 1 Lower |
OUTSIDE MARKET OPENING CALLS:
| Corn Futures: | Mixed |
| Soybean Futures: | Mixed |
| Soybean Meal Futures: | Steady to $1 Higher |
| Wheat Futures: | Mixed |
MILK:
It is interesting how the attitude of the market can change for various reasons. The attitude of the trade for dairy turned bearish and it may be difficult for this the change anytime soon. The lingering impact from the high levels of inventory of cheese will have a lasting effect on the market. Milk production has been holding well at a lower level than a year ago. This provides sufficient supply for bottling and manufacturing needs. Good quality forages have been harvested in many areas that will reduce the cost of feed supplements and possibly increase profitability to some degree. Weakness of grain prices will also provide help for those who need to purchase grain. Good weather in many areas has so far kept crop conditions good and may result in a good crop with sufficient supply. This may keep culling limited as farms will be able to feed current numbers as well as possibly increase cow numbers on some operations.
CHEESE:
Cheese prices are not expected to change much. The hope is that they do not move much lower but find a level of stability. However, there is concern over continued inflation and the potential for a recession. The impact on demand for cheese is uncertain with maybe much of that already factored in. Traders will be cautious ahead of spot trading.
BUTTER:
It will be interesting to see whether price will hold above $3.00 or if the current level will result in buyers backing away from the market. Price could go wither way but will likely hang around the $3.00 level for a time.
