MILK:
Class III futures found some buying interest as steady cheese prices were not viewed as bearish due to the strength of dry whey. Dry whey moved to a new high for the year providing price support to the market that cheese prices have not been able to do. Milk production is improving throughout the country with component values higher than a year ago. Butterfat is reported to be particularly higher providing a greater cream supply to the market. More milk will be available over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend, but it appears the spot milk supply may be less than usual for this time of year. However, that will not result in increased prices as manufacturing and bottling plants are not clamoring for extra milk supplies. Class IV futures showed substantial losses on some contracts as the continued weakness of the butter price turned traders increasingly bearish. Wednesday will be the last day to trade dairy futures and options for the week with both the spot market and the futures market remaining closed on Friday.
AVERAGE CLASS III PRICES:
| 3 Month: | $19.09 |
| 6 Month: | $19.04 |
| 9 Month: | $18.93 |
| 12 Month: | $18.89 |
CHEESE:
Recently, steady cheese prices have been viewed negatively resulting in selling pressure on milk futures as this indicated limited upside price potential. That was not the case today as the strong dry whey price coupled with the steady cheese prices were viewed positively increasing the aggressive buying by traders. The dry whey price moved to a new high for the year and the highest level since March 29, 2022.
BUTTER:
The butter price showed further weakness moving price to a new low for the year and down to the lowest price since December 14, 2023. If the price breaks below $2.46, it will fall back to the lowest level since July 2023. There is an ample supply of butter and active churning. This leaves sufficient supply available and buyers complacent.
OUTSIDE MARKETS SUMMARY:
December corn closed down 4.75 cents per bushel at $4.20, January soybeans closed down 2.25 cents at $9.8350 and January soybean meal closed down $4.50 per ton at $291.40. March Chicago wheat closed up 2.25 cents at $5.58. February live cattle closed steady. January crude oil is down $0.17 per barrel at $68.77. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is up 124 points at 44,860 with the NASDAQ up 119 points at 19,174.
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