OPENING CALLS:
| Class III Milk Futures: | 4 to 8 Lower |
| Class IV Milk Futures: | Mixed |
| Butter Futures: | Mixed |
OUTSIDE MARKET OPENING CALLS:
| Corn Futures: | Mixed |
| Soybean Futures: | Mixed |
| Soybean Meal Futures: | Mixed |
| Wheat Futures: | 1 to 2 Lower |
MILK:
Milk futures are not finding any price strength from underlying cash. There is continued hope that we may see some strength from better underlying cash because of increased demand, but that does not materialize. What is taking place is later futures contracts continue to erode price premium. Spot milk price is eroding as the holiday period approaches and bottlers redirect milk to manufacturing as schools will be closed for a few weeks. With some spot prices already $4.00 under class, much lower prices might be expected for a brief period.
CHEESE:
Prices are expected to remain choppy. Buyers and sellers are taking care of business but are not being aggressive one way or the other. The market seems to be balanced for the time being with a slight bearish feel. Price may revisit the recent lows again as the market heads to the end of the year.
BUTTER:
Price may slide lower moving back into the range it had been in the first half of the year. There is sufficient supply on hand leaving buyers unaggressive unless fill-in orders need to be filled. Some plants continue to sell some cream to limit the amount of butter being manufactured and limit inventory build.
