OPENING CALLS:
| Class III Milk Futures: | Mixed |
| Class IV Milk Futures: | 4 to 6 Higher |
| Butter Futures: | Steady to 1 Higher |
OUTSIDE MARKET OPENING CALLS:
| Corn Futures: | 2 to 3 Higher |
| Soybean Futures: | 8 to 11 Higher |
| Soybean Meal Futures: | $3 to $5 Higher |
| Wheat Futures: | 6 to 8 Lower |
MILK:
Class III milk futures are floundering and trending lower. Solid support from underlying cash remains elusive with cheese buyers seeing sufficient supply at the current time. Milk production is steady to slowly declining seasonally. Greater milk volumes are moving to the cheese vat as fluid milk demand remains steady at lower levels. Spot milk remains at a discount to class and may remain that way for much of the summer until milk begins to move to school accounts in August. As of July 1, USDA began accepting applications through its updated Emergency Assistance for Livestock, Honeybees, and Farm-Raised Fish Program (ELAP) to provide financial assistance to eligible dairy producers who incur milk losses due to H5N1 in their dairy herds. Producers need to contact their FSA office to apply.
CHEESE:
It was anticipated cheese prices had been low enough to increase the interest of buyers but Monday was not the day. Buyers see sufficient supply available to the market and see no need to be aggressive. They continue to purchase as it is available, meeting current demand and increasing ownership for later demand.
BUTTER:
The butter price may move back to the recent high. Buyers have been more aggressive and sellers are offering at higher prices. Price strength may be limited as there is sufficient supply available. Churning is slowing as the cream supply is tightening, but that is seasonal and not a concern as inventory is above year-ago levels.
