MILK
At least there was some life in Class III futures today with contracts closing steady or higher. That is little consolation for any change in trend or for higher prices in general in the near term. The market continues to exhibit short-term trading activity as traders scalp the market or a short-term profit rather than taking long-term positions. It will take a monumental effort to change the current bearish attitude of traders. Underlying cash prices will need to find support before traders may take some interest in taking long-term positions. Right now, there is too much milk available with reports of milk being dumped and spot milk prices remaining low. There are also some reports of a heavy volume of cattle at livestock auctions as farms need money and cows are being sold for replacements or for slaughter. USDA will release the May Milk Production report tomorrow which will give an indication as to cow numbers compared to April and to a year ago. Heavy culling might be the key to stronger milk prices in time.
AVERAGE CLASS III PRICES
| 3 Month: | $15.53 |
| 6 Month: | $16.74 |
| 9 Month: | $17.18 |
| 12 Month: | $17.39 |
CHEESE
Block cheese may have found a level at which buyers might be interested in buying even though supplies are plentiful. With low prices and the potential for prices to increase as the year progresses, buyers may decide to buy for later demand. They may be unaggressive as lower bids are generally placed when spot trading begins.
BUTTER
Price is unable to find support due to buyers being complacent as supply and demand are balanced. Inventory has been growing and international demand has slowed. The cream supply is not as ample as it had been, but there still is sufficiently available for strong butter output. Cream supply is expected to be reduced as the summer progresses. However, price may remain range bound.
OUTSIDE MARKETS SUMMARY
July corn closed up 3.50 cents per bushel at $6.4375, July soybeans closed up 10.75 cents at $14.7725 and July soybean meal closed down $3.60 per ton at $412.80. July Chicago wheat closed up 7.75 cents at $6.9575. August live cattle closed down $2.03 at $169.70. August crude oil is down $0.91 per barrel at $71.02. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is down 245 points at 34,054 and NASDAQ is down 22 points at 13,667.
