GENERAL OVERVIEW:
Class IV milk traded higher this afternoon as butter and non-fat dry milk both climbed midday.
MILK:
Class III milk was mixed this afternoon with nearly even trade across all board months. Traders are unwilling to take a long position with the March Milk Production report to be released later this week. Expectations are for higher milk production, so it is difficult to get excited about small rallies in the market when we are facing such a massive production number. Class IV milk did rally with strength in the cash market, trading 12 to 22 cents higher at the end of the trading day.
AVERAGE CLASS III PRICES:
| 3 Month: | $17.21 |
| 6 Month: | $17.97 |
| 9 Month: | $18.18 |
| 12 Month: | $18.04 |
CHEESE:
Cheese blocks found some strength today in the cash market, which bled through to the futures market earlier this afternoon but lost a little steam by the close. Cheese futures closed mixed, up 1.1 cents to down 0.6 cents. The retail market is steady, and traders expect flat trading to go forward over the next few weeks.
BUTTER:
After late last week's sharp decline in the butter price, butter made a nice comeback in the cash market today, closing up 4.5 cents. What was most notable is the volume that traded today with 49 loads exchanging hands. A mix between the buyers seeing it as a sign to take advantage of a big pullback in prices after last Tuesday's demand spike, as well as sellers happily letting go of excess product on hand. The futures market closed up 1.1 cents to 3.475 cents.
OUTSIDE MARKETS SUMMARY:
May corn closed up 3.25 cents per bushel at $4.5200, May soybeans closed down 1.50 cents at $11.6575 and July soybean meal closed down $6.00 per ton at $321.20. July Chicago wheat closed up 6.75 cents at $6.0600. June live cattle closed down $1.28 at $246.08. June crude oil is up 4.83 per barrel at $87.42. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is down 4 points at 49,442 and NASDAQ is down 64 points at 24,404.
