MILK:
It appears milk prices will remain weak through the end of the year. Little support is seen in the market as the underlying cash butter and cheese prices have been unable to find strong buying interest. Class III milk futures in the nearby months have fallen over $2.50 per cwt from the level they were in September. The market will have a difficult time recovering from this weakness. Any price increase may remain short-lived with traders seeing it as a selling opportunity. Much of the trading has been scalping the market for a profit if it is realized. Most traders have not established long-term positions. It would be nice to be able to say the selling has been overdone to the downside, but that has not been the case as nearby futures are in line with cash. It is reported that President-elect Trump is looking at former Georgia Senator Kelly Loeffler for agricultural secretary.
AVERAGE CLASS III PRICES:
| 3 Month: | $18.87 |
| 6 Month: | $18.84 |
| 9 Month: | $18.78 |
| 12 Month: | $18.80 |
CHEESE:
For the week, blocks declined 4.75 cents with 15 loads traded. Barrels declined 3.50 cents with 10 loads traded. Dry whey gained 0.50 cent with nine loads traded. It was unusual to see more blocks traded than barrels as it had been the other way around for quite some time. The buyers of cheese have no reason to be aggressive as the sellers have not been shy about moving cheese to the market rather than storing it. Buyers continue to wait for lower prices to purchase for demand or inventory.
BUTTER:
For the week, butter declined 9 cents with 23 loads traded. Grade A nonfat dry milk declined by 3.25 cents with 13 loads traded. The butter price continues to erode nearing the lows last seen in January. USDA will release the October Cold Storage report on Monday. The report is expected to show a significantly higher butter inventory than a year ago.
OUTSIDE MARKETS SUMMARY:
December corn closed down 1.25 cents per bushel at $4.2550, January soybeans closed up 5.75 cents at $9.8350 and December soybean meal closed up $1.50 per ton at $289.20. March Chicago wheat closed down 4.75 cents at $5.6475. February live cattle closed up $0.78 at $188.20. January crude oil is up $1.13 per barrel at $71.23. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is up 426 points at 44,297 with the NASDAQ is up 31 points at 19,004.
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