Good Morning!
We start off the day with Export Sales, Jobless Claims and Producer Price Index (PPI) at 7:30 A.M. followed by EIA Gas Storage at 9:30 A.M. The U.S.-China trade talks continue to jump hurdles and obstacles with more room for improvement of equaling the goal post. Mr. Mnuchin and Mr. Lighthizer agree that there is only one caveat and hopefully the negotiations will leave both parties on the same page. If reached this agreement would be historical and set a model for future trade agreements. Hey! E.U. I hope your listening we will spend our money more wisely and keep foreign aid in the pockets of the U.S. citizen. The TAXPAYER! And forget about the Paris accord about global warming in which the U.S.A. was the only member that complied to the ridiculous regulations and footed the bill. No More! And as these talks continue to be close Mother Nature has yet to coral Old Man Winter 2018/19 as the farm fields once again brace for another Bomb Cyclone to pass as it stretches its havoc on numerous states in the Union. The Grain markets remain in limbo and the market seems to be unfazed even with the funds piling on record shorts while bullish fundamentals cannot light a fire into buyers seeking value. In the overnight electronic session the May Corn is currently trading at 362 ¼, which is a ½ of a cent higher. The trading range has been 363 to 360 ½.
On the Ethanol front production is obviously down do to weather that is stretching refineries capacity to refine different fuel blends especially this time of year as we head into the summertime driving season. We did see activity in the overnight electronic session for the first time this week with the May Ethanol currently trading at 1.336, which is .009 higher. The trading range has been 1.336 to 1.317. 118 contracts traded and Open Interest has grown to 893 contracts. The market is currently showing 3 bids @ 1.335 and 2 offers @ 1.338.
On the Crude Oil front we see some consolidation after the market technically looks overbought but the risk-on fundamentals tell us otherwise. In the overnight electronic session the May Crude Oil is currently trading at 6424, which is 37 tics lower. The trading range has been 6449 to 6363. Keep your ear to the ground on events coming out of Libya and Venezuela as we will soon recognize the shortages of heavy Crude Oil.
On the Natural Gas front we have the EIA Gas Storage report today and the Thomson Reuters poll with 19 analysts participating expect builds ranging from 17 bcf to 41 bcf. This compares to the one-year decline of 34 bcf and the five-year average increase of 21 bcf. In the overnight electronic session the May Natural Gas is currently trading at 2.680, which is 2 cents lower. The trading range has been 2.710 2.667.
Have a Great Trading Day!